Oregon to start Brock Thomas at QB: Ducks bench Dylan Raiola as CFP hopes hang in the balance

Oregon is turning to third-string quarterback Brock Thomas over Dylan Raiola with its College Football Playoff hopes on the line against Nebraska, according to Matt Zenitz and Chris Hummer of CBS Sports. This will be Thomas’ first career start.

Thomas coached the majority of the first team representatives throughout the week; he will get his first career start on Saturday. During his midweek press conference, Ducks coach Dan Lanning explained factors that influenced the quarterback’s decision with Dante Moore still recovering from a concussion.

“(Saturday’s performance) plays a role, as does this week’s work. I was asked why not make the change earlier after the game. I think it’s fair. Along the same lines, I think some of the positions we (Raiola) played weren’t successful opportunities either,” Lanning said. “I think we made some adjustments to get the ball out a little quicker, creating more open frames that allowed Brock to do that.

“But you have to be able to protect the ball, that’s part of it, and like I said after the game, Dylan is also a guy who played very well against USC and you have to be aware of that as well.”

After throwing his second interception – and completing just 31.6% of his passes – Raiola was pulled in favor of Thomas against the Bruins. Thomas, a senior and Eugene native, has been at Oregon since joining the program as a backup during the 2023 recruiting cycle.

Despite his age, Thomas has very little playing experience. His 15 pass attempts against UCLA are nearly half of his 36 career attempts. In this small sample size, Thomas completed 72.2% of his throws for 302 yards and two touchdowns.

Who is Brock Thomas?

Coming out of high school, Thomas was Oregon’s No. 96 quarterback and No. 10 player in the 2023 recruiting class, according to 247Sports. He received scholarship offers from smaller programs like Air Force, Army, Eastern Washington and Portland State.

Instead of accepting one of those offers, Thomas opted to continue his path to Oregon and the Eugene native became a Duck. Thomas has remained with the team ever since, despite being well behind other quarterbacks like Bo Nix, Dillon Gabriel, Moore and Raiola.

Thomas didn’t even attempt a pass until September of last year, when he went 0-for-1 in a 66-point win over Oklahoma State.

In last week’s loss to UCLA, Thomas at least gave his team a chance to win, even if he didn’t set the world on fire. The senior made smart decisions in the passing game, which was an improvement over Raiola, although he missed the snap on a key fourth-and-1.

Now, in a surprising turn of events, the Eugene quarterback will get the chance to lead Oregon to victory after waiting for an opportunity that was never guaranteed. Thomas has the makings of a folk hero if he can seize his opportunity on Saturday.

Where it went wrong for Raiola

Coming off Oregon’s win over USC, Raiola was held up as an example of a player who humbled himself and accepted a replacement role to revive a career that had been derailed at Nebraska.

Two weeks later, Raiola watched from the bench as Thomas tried to lead Oregon to victory.

Against the Trojans, Raiola looked composed, confident and precise. He completed 76% of his passes for 289 yards and two touchdowns. In fact, Raiola played so well that there were even slight questions about what Lanning would do if Moore returned from a concussion with Raiola sparking the offense.

Unfortunately for Lanning, this dilemma never presented itself. Moore remained out for the UCLA game and Raiola looked like the player he was toward the end of his time at Nebraska. The junior was sloppy and inaccurate as he tried to do too much on several key plays.

Even though Raiola played poorly against the Bruins, things took a negative turn for him during his second year at Nebraska. Entering college as a five-star recruit, Raiola reached his full potential at Lincoln and suffered a broken fibula, limiting him to nine games last season.

As a rift brewed between Nebraska and Raiola’s family, the two sides parted ways and he ended up in Oregon. The USC game seemed like a big step in the right direction, but old habits emerged against UCLA. As a result, Raiola will have to wait for another opportunity later.

Oregon CFP hopes it can survive

The Ducks began the season as national championship favorites, but they became the country’s biggest disappointment.

There’s still a sliver of hope for Oregon, but they’ll likely have to turn the table, and this mess at quarterback won’t make things any easier. Based on what we’ve seen from the Ducks, they can’t be trusted to go 7-0 against their remaining schedule.

There’s at least a good chance Oregon has three losses by Sunday. Nebraska is 5-1 and just took defending national champion Indiana to the wire, albeit in Lincoln.

Even if the Ducks go 6-1 with a loss to Ohio State, they will need a lot of help to make the playoffs. USC, Nebraska, Northwestern and Michigan would all need strong finishes to make these wins as good as possible. Maybe it happens, but Oregon doesn’t want to put itself at the mercy of the mushy Big Ten environment.

Oregon likely needs Moore back at quarterback this season, which is not a sure thing, in order to have a chance to run the table. For now, though, the Ducks’ fate is in the hands of Thomas and an offense that’s searching for answers.