Nate Costa? Really?

Both efforts might have meant nothing, we don’t know yet.

Costa was being touted as a GREAT running QB when he came in, and “the perfect QB for this system”. He may have lost this due to surgeries, but do you know that he has?

Some people are writing on here that Thomas isn’t fast… which of these guys is a better runner?

Which is a better passer?

We don’t know a thing, but both have high accolades so I’ll just wait and see.

and weren’t they running prevent that whole second half after they jumped out huge?

and yes dave, i did it this time.

Costa was touted as a fucking superman when he came in, and Chip was ready to marry the guy he gushed over him so much prior to 2008, now we have people calling him a loser.

If Costa wins the job, he is the QB that the coaches think will win the most games.

I want Thomas if he can win the job. He has much more potential than Costa, but at this point, it’s an unproven commodity. If Costa wins the job, it means that Thomas is just not ready to lead this football team.

The O-line Costa played behind was endlessly better by the time the UCLA game rolled around than it was in Boise. Costa’s low release point worries me a little bit (just as Masoli’s always did). The bottom line is, whoever wins the job is the better QB.

Costa ran the ball well on two seperate occasions and took some pretty tough bumps. I don’t expect him to be able to take off and leave DB’s in the dust but he appears to be okay when it comes to running.

Get out!

Therefor, why go with youth if the experienced guy will give you a better chance to win. Whomever gives you the better chance to win now, not who has the better potential in the long run, should be the starter.

The rest is a lot of guesswork.

However, if Costa is actually better and has a BCS season in him, that overrides doesn’t it?

I recently watched the ‘08 spring game, and I think Kelly is gonna still use Thomas even if he isn’t a starter. They ran a couple plays with Thomas out wide while Harper was taking snaps. (Ref: ’08 Holiday Bowl)

We may be able to get away with starting two QB’s. Either way, no matter who is playing behind center we will beat New Mexico and Portland State.

I am not saying that Costa is bad, but he is not the same player that he was before going under the knife three times.

And you know this how? The dingbat homer commenters on Rob Moseley’s blog who change their collective tune in waves depending on what scapegoat they can find on our team this week?

Unless you went to fall practices the past two years and saw Nate Costa rip off two untouched thirty yard runs and spray the ball around the field with great field command, like I did, I think you’re just chewing the fat of the various Joe Blow self-appointed “experts” on what’s best for the team based on whatever nuances they think they see in Rob Moseley’s daily practice recaps prose.

That being said, I just think that Thomas is a better fit for the offense.

How in the world are any of us able to make a statement like this. We know very little about either QB. We haven’t seen Thomas run significantly, and we’ve actually seen good things from Costa in practice (though not in the UCLA game, and there were reasons for that). We’ve seen some great throws out of Thomas, and some very good throws from Costa.

We’re playing for next season and next season alone. If Thomas can’t beat out Costa for the starting spot right now, he doesn’t deserve playing time. I believe that he has more physical talent than Costa, but if he can’t win the starting job fair and square, why in the world should he play?

Chip does know best. He knows its not good for the team to play worse performing players because of some supposed untapped potential. The best performing players will play.

The gloves are freaking OFF.

So you’ve seen something, and someone else has seen something. Personally, I think everyone’s scope of what they have seen is pretty limited. You saw one game. A road game. Against an above average defense. Once again this would be like someone watching only the BSU game and saying, “have you seen Masoli’s mechanics? They’re terrible, he looks like a robot.” or “he couldn’t run the zone read at all, his decision making was terrible and our running game never got going.” It’s a limited scope, and does not take into account things you are not privy to, such as practice, drills, and film study.

So how will this be solved? The coaches will solve it. We all agree that we trust Kelly to make the right decision with the QB (he did last year, I believe he will again). But I think that making outlandish statements of Brady Leaf comparison, or that your limited perspective is so much better than someone else’s limited perspective is simply a little premature.

Think of it this way, if Costa starts and takes us to a Rose Bowl, are you going to feel great about the statements you are making here now? Is that outside the realm of possibility? Consider it.

First, get off your high horse. We all saw the UCLA game, and being at a game is probably the worst possible way to judge a QB. Watching tape is much more effective because you know what you’re looking for, and are in a frame of mind to properly evaluate QB performance.

Second, the UCLA game is a terrible game to judge Costa on simply because of how bizarre that game unfolded. Oregon ran a mere 26 plays in the first half. There were a number of reasons for this. One was ball control by UCLA. Another was a fairly simple gameplan early by Oregon. These combined for a fairly mundane half.

Then, Oregon took a quick 3 TD lead, and Costa didn’t need to do anything more. He had some not so great moments in the game, and some very good looking moments in the game. But extrapolating this performance is just ridiculous.

Furthermore, I think your analysis of Costa’s performance is pretty flawed. To claim he doesn’t have speed and that his release point leads to batted balls or INTs is just crazy. The one INT had nothing to do with release, and everything to do with a huge player RIGHT in front of him. And there were no batted balls, at least according to the official box score. As far as speed, he doesn’t have out of the world speed, but he has above average speed for a QB, and we have no idea how that compares to Thomas.

I would encourage you to watch that game again. Your recollection of the game is quite different from what actually happened. Because there were plenty of reasons why the Oregon offense was ineffective. Penalties, missed assignments on the O-line, and dropped passes were killer. Not saying Costa was perfect, but the offensive issues were shared by the entire team.

Lastly, you keep saying that Thomas would be a better fit for the offense. You still haven’t backed this up in any reasonable way. Is Thomas faster? Does he make better decisions on the option? Is he a more accurate passer? Can he get the ball out quickly to the receivers? You don’t know the answer to any of there very important questions, and are in no place to make a judgement on which QB is or is not the better fit for the system. This may be your opinion, but back it up to some degree.

Also, use the reply button. It helps the conversation.

4) Increase in porn production

I’ve speculated that race has had something to do with “Costa doesn’t fit the system” bull crap.

Other then that, I don’t get your question, as it almost sounds like you’re underhandedly calling/assuming people defending Costa, racist – which is laughably preposterous.

I mean, I don’t speak for EVERYONE, obviously, and I won’t completely disregard the possibility that there are racist Duck fans out there (whether blatantly or subtly so). But as anecdotal evidence, I offer Dennis Dixon who is one of the most beloved Ducks of recent history.

I think there are some ways that people try to fit QBs into stereotypical boxes (black QBs are compared to other black QBs, normally because of their “athleticism” while white QBs are more traditional pocket passers and game managers). But I don’t think that’s happening to any noticeable extent here.

Do you think that race has anything to do people loving Costa?

First, who here “loves” Costa? No one here is irrationally defending him. We want him to get the same shot Thomas is getting. The best QB should play. I think that most people here reject your outright dismissal of Costa with little factual basis.

Next, no, the defense of Costa has nothing to do with race. If anything, the comparison of Costa and Leaf is due to race, as they have pretty much nothing in common other than the color of their skin.

it’s bizzare, but it makes decent sense….except for the costa not being as good as thomas part.

If it meant I didn’t have to use iTunes…

Wait, what are we talking about?

but you can just tell.

I don’t know how to really say this nicely, but this is one of the worst arguments I have heard on the situation. It’s the same line of thinking that the BCS uses (we don’t need mid majors like Utah or TCU in BCS bowls, they’re not as good as the BCS conferences, you can just tell).

It’s the damn “eye test” conclusion all over again.

You know what I can tell? I can tell that Costa has 4 going on 5 years in Kelly’s system. I can tell that Kelly knows his players better than anyone on this site, including you. I can tell that Oregon’s system is adaptable to the QB that gives them the best chance of winning. I can tell that I am not going to be able to use statistics, rational thought, or facts to convice you that Costa deserves as much respect in considering who should start as Thomas. I can tell that you need work on your analogies (Costa and Leaf, Thomas and iPods).

I actually want Thomas to win the job, because in my mind if Costa starts, it leaves open the possibility that Masoli comes back after his redshirt year and has a chance to play again. But I am not going to discount a guy who was heavily recruited for this system, has spent 4 years under this offensive genius, has probably more heart than I can possibly imagine, and who from all angles looks just as capable as Thomas in leading this offense. I’ll stay open minded to the situation and support whomever Kelly decides gives Oregon the best chance to go to the Rose Bowl or even the BCS Championship game.

I can just tell this is going no where. I’m done.

is that you??

Ouch.

Costa made special teams player of the week as a holder. Just think what he could do at the QB Shortstop position.

Welcome to AtQ. I can’t decide if you’re drunk or a genius.

But i love it! Rec’d!

I don’t get it … how could picking Costa over Thomas be considered a change?

That this is an argument to retain our commander-in-chief (Chip Kelly), the QBs (Generals on the ground) in the Iraq war have been changed out several times. So I agree we should definitely keep Chip Kelly in charge, it would be really stupid to fire him. As far as changing commanders in the trenches goes, well they serve at the discretion of the commander-in-chief, so let’s trust to Chip, and his joint chiefs-of-staff to be competent to evaluate the best man for the job.