ESPN College Football

EUGENE, Ore. -- While Oregon quarterback Darron Thomas' decision to enter the NFL draft a year early shocked many outside the football program, it didn't surprise many of those close to him, including his fellow Ducks quarterbacks. Thomas had brought up the possibility a number of times throughout the year, so backup Bryan Bennett and talented true freshman Marcus Mariota knew he was eyeballing a potential departure.

Though the news was greeted with more than a few gasps, many Ducks fans didn't spice their surprise with disappointment. Some had felt that Bennett -- despite Thomas' record-setting numbers -- was a better quarterback, or at least that he had more upside. They had seen what he'd done in limited action in 2011, coming off the bench in a big win over Arizona State and a start at Colorado.

Inside the program, not only was it not a big surprise, it also wasn't viewed as a perfunctory passing of the torch. There was a mystery man, an X factor, with whom fans and media weren't terribly familiar because Oregon has shut down access to practices: true freshman Marcus Mariota.

Mariota, a 6-foot-4, 200-pounder out of St. Louis High School in Honolulu, had shown enough in one impressive redshirt year to be viewed by his coaches and teammates as a legitimate threat to win the job.

"When DT left, I told Brian, 'You got to work for it. Marcus Mariota is a very good quarterback,'" said center Hroniss Grasu, Bennett's roommate and good friend. "It's going to be a great competition."

What you keep hearing when you ask players and coaches about Bennett and Mariota is that they are notably similar. Both are tall and fairly thin -- Bennett is 6-3, 205 pounds. Both are athletic and comfortable running an option attack. Both are capable passers. Both have low-key personalities.

"We feel real confident as a staff in our quarterback situation," said coach Chip Kelly, whose Ducks begin spring practices Tuesday. "They just haven't played significant amounts. I'm real confident in whoever ends up out of those guys pulling the trigger that we'll have a pretty good one."

There's good reason for that. Since Kelly arrived as the Ducks' offensive coordinator in 2007, Oregon has been good to outstanding at the position. He transformed Dennis Dixon from a guy who threw more interceptions than touchdowns in 2006 to a leading Heisman Trophy candidate before he got hurt. He made Jeremiah Masoli, an unknown summer junior college transfer, into a swashbuckling, dual-threat force. And under his tutelage, Thomas ended up throwing more TD passes than any previous Ducks QB.

Kelly insists he has no preconceptions: "Our program is founded on competition," he said. Of course, many coaches throw the "competition" coaching platitude around. What actually happens on the depth chart demonstrates that most still favor seniority, particularly at QB. Coaches believe in the value of experience and they are more comfortable with players with whom they've built up years of familiarity. To win a job, a younger player must decisively demonstrate superiority.

But Kelly has shown he's not like that, and we need look no further than the last quarterback competition in Eugene between senior Nate Costa and Thomas, then a sophomore.

Costa was the feel-good story after Masoli's ugly departure. He was the one-time spread-option prodigy who'd been done in by bad knees, but heading into 2010 spring practices he was again healthy and ready to lead the Ducks with his moxie and still substantial skills. Thomas was a skinny guy from Houston with an odd throwing motion who lacked Costa's polish.

Just about everyone thought Costa would win the job, perhaps even by the end of spring practices. But a funny thing happened: Thomas was announced as the starter in late August.

Bennett was a true freshman observer of that competition, at least the fall camp portion. And, just as Thomas didn't surprise him when he opted to leave for the NFL, he also didn't surprise Bennett when he won the job.

"At first, I saw Nate as the older, senior, who kind of took control more," Bennett said. "I think it could have gone either way, but I wasn't too surprised. I thought it kind of started to lean towards Darron at the end."

Fair to say Bennett knows he can't expect his limited experience -- 369 yards passing, six touchdowns, no interceptions -- to give him a substantial advantage, at least not as baubles that will impress Kelly and offensive coordinator Mark Helfrich. But that experience could become a foundation or launching point that helps Bennett develop faster, which could provide a competitive advantage. The game should be slower to him than to Mariota. He knows how it feels when the lights are on for real, and how his teammates and coaches react. He knows how to prepare as a starter. And he saw how Thomas won the job over Costa.

"Since Darron left, I have taken it on myself to present myself as a leader of this team," Bennett said. "I would like to be the starting quarterback of this team. In my mind, I'm going to continue to tell myself that I need to get better and worry about the things I can control. It could come down neck-and-neck. It could be decided in spring ball. I really don't know. It's more a competition with myself, because I can control what I do. I can't control what [Mariota] does."

When fellow Ducks talk about Mariota, they talk about how quickly he's picked up the offense. Mariota, in a revealing moment of humility that supports that very point, said it took him "a week" -- a whole week! -- to feel comfortable running the offense in fall camp his freshman year.

"I feel we are going in evenly," Mariota said. "Bryan is a very good player. He's been in this system for a while now. I'm just going to take it day by day. We both are. And whoever wins, we'll be rooting for each other."

Mariota adds: "If Bryan wins the job, I will be behind him 100 percent. This is a team thing."

This "team" thing has changed at Oregon. Three years ago, the Ducks starting QB was only of local, perhaps regional interest. After three consecutive conference titles, it's now a position of national import. The last three Ducks QBs have been in Rose Bowl and national title hunts.

The expectations aren't any lower in 2012, even with Thomas' surprising/not-so-surprising decision.

"I know whoever the quarterback is, he will do a great job," Grasu said. "Hopefully even better than last season. I know last season was a great season, but I think with the team we've got coming back everywhere else, we can be very successful."

Oregon coach Chip Kelly recently groused about how hard it is to get elite teams to sign a home-and-home series with his Ducks. While money, as it often is in college football, is an issue, the biggest reason is teams don't want to get their butts kicked. Kelly's crew has won 18 in a row at home, last losing to Boise State on Sept. 20, 2008.

So when you ask Kelly about what he's learned about his team during a pair of home blowouts after it lost to LSU in Cowboys Stadium, he doesn't make any sweeping pronouncements of newfound skill, confidence or maturity.

"We're a good team at home," he said. "What we've got to learn now is how do we play on the road?"

That's a fair point. Though Oregon has lost only five games over the past two-plus seasons, each has been outside the friendly confines of Autzen Stadium.

And the numbers show a decided difference, too. The Ducks averaged 59 points at home last season and 36.7 points on the road. They averaged 41.6 points at home in 2009 and 29.7 point on the road. On defense, the Ducks held foes to 14.8 points at home in 2010 and 22.0 points on the road. In 2009, it was 20.4 at home and 27.7 on the road.

Of course, every team is better at home, and the quality of the home and road schedules matter. But when your team is trying to join the super-elite, those are numbers coaches notice and point out to players. For example, Auburn last season played better defense on the road, and averaged 45.8 points at home and 36.3 points on the road. In 2009, Alabama averaged 32.7 points at home and 31.4 points on the road. Those are the last two national champions.

So Kelly wants his team to take its A-game -- its Autzen-game -- to Tucson to face reeling Arizona.

Speaking of the Wildcats, a lot has been made of their seven-game losing streak to FBS foes. No one likes a seven-game losing streak.

But some perspective, folks. Four of those games were against top seven-ranked foes, and a fifth was against an Oklahoma State squad that finished 2010 ranked 13th. The Ducks will be the Wildcats third top-10 opponent in three weeks.

"This has been a perfect storm and we've got to weather it," said Arizona coach Mike Stoops (a visit to No. 23 USC is next, by the way).

Further, Stoops is a defensive coach. His most infamous sideline frowns and gesticulations come when his defense is not doing what he wants it to do. And that's been happening a lot of late, seeing that his defense ranks 111th in the nation.

Oregon, by the way, will be bringing the nation's No. 6 offense, the third consecutive top-20 offense the Wildcats will have faced, which is also a good reason the defense has looked so lousy. You might be surprised, however, that the fiery Stoops has become philosophical, preaching the power of positive thinking and learning from adversity.

"You have to look at where it's exposing our weak areas, where we have to get better," he said.

Stoops then is probably noting his run game, which ranks 116th in the nation with an anemic 55.7 yards per game. The Ducks defensive weakness, at least thus far, has been against the run, see 214.3 yards per game, which ranks 11th in the Pac-12. So that's an interesting weakness-on-weakness matchup.

It's more likely, though, this one will come down to a showdown of strength on strength: Wildcats quarterback Nick Foles versus a good Oregon pass defense, which ranks No. 1 in the conference.

Kelly is a big fan of Foles.

"I think Nick is one of the top quarterbacks in the country, not only in this conference," he said. "I don't think he gets nearly enough credit."

Of course, we could have another barn burner. The last time the Ducks visited in 2009, they won a thrilling 44-41 decision in double-overtime, a game that it looked like the Wildcats had in the bag. Until they didn't.

"I remember Jeremiah Masoli just running around making plays," Stoops said. "He made some incredible plays down the stretch. We couldn't come up with that last play to win the game."

Oregon doesn't want that. It wants to come in a take care of business -- like Stanford did in Tucson last weekend -- and look like a team that shouldn't yet be written out of national title contention.

Stoops' team is just trying to weather the storm. But he sees "speed everywhere" with Oregon. And he knows no team brings an offensive maelstrom like the Ducks.

Wise folks have said and written many things about dealing with the hills and valleys of life. Most of us are well aware that it's a mistake to get too high when things are good or too low when they aren't. We know it's better to focus on things we can control and to avoid allowing our emotions to overcome constructive decision-making and ensuing action.

And if any of that were easy, wise folks would spend more time talking and writing about other things.

So we have Oregon. No college football program in the country has combined stunning successes and swirling controversies over the past two-plus seasons as much as Oregon has under coach Chip Kelly. Perhaps even more amazing than the frenetic tempo and creativity of the Ducks' offense is their ability to make news in positive and negative ways, yet remained focused.

Year 1 started with a humiliating loss at Boise State and a punch from then-Ducks RB LeGarrette Blount and ended with a Pac-10 championship and a Rose Bowl berth. Year 2 started with quarterback Jeremiah Masoli -- a Heisman Trophy candidate -- getting booted from the team and ended with another Pac-10 championship and a berth in the national title game.

Year 3? It's started with an NCAA inquiry into the recruitment of redshirt freshman running back Lache Seastrunk, who decided to transfer last weekend, and a $25,000 payment to his mentor, Willie Lyles, who is a recruiting scout and alleged "street agent."

Where will Year 3 end? Will this be the year that the Ducks do get distracted and upended by off-field issues?

"I think the media around here is the smartest people I've ever been around my entire life," Kelly said with what sources said may have been some sarcastic shadings.

"If they voted us No. 1 in the conference and No. 3 in the country, they must not think it is a distraction. So we shouldn't let it be a distraction, because I don't think anyone would vote us No. 3 in the country if you guys thought it was a distraction."

Zing! The capacious "Book of Quotable Chip" adds another entry.

Kelly then referred to one of his handful of mantras: "We have the same mentality all the time. We have a vision for what this football program is supposed to be about and we prepare against that vision. We compete against that vision every Saturday and that's how we measure ourselves. ... We are not concerned with any outside influences, whether it be praise or blame."

Kelly's ability to impose that philosophy -- all part of his "Win the day" credo -- has been remarkable, the fuel for the Ducks' rapid rise in the college football pecking order. When you talk to his players, they either parrot what he says verbatim or provide their own little twist.

Said redshirt junior running back LaMichael James: "I focus on my team and that's it. I don't really care what outsiders have to say."

Still, there's just a little bit of double-speak. Don't believe for a moment the Ducks are unaware of -- and not following -- both the intrigue (Lyles & the NCAA!) and hype (national title contender!) that surrounds them. Kelly claims he doesn't pay attention to what reporters write, but he is curiously apt to tweak them for their stories -- Hey, Chip! -- most notably when they are wrong.

And the players, though totally bought into the Temple of Chip, are the same way. They claim they never discuss the day's headlines. Balderdash.

"Everybody wants to say all this about Oregon," redshirt junior quarterback Darron Thomas said. "We don't like that. We've just been working hard, getting ready for the season, ready to shut everybody up, ready to come out and play ball and forget about all these other allegations that are eventually going to come out."

No one knows when things are "going to come out." The NCAA hasn't even gotten around to sending Oregon an official letter of inquiry, which would spell out how the organization plans to apply vague rules about the use of scouting services. Those who say they know the endgame are lying. Nonetheless, there's been lots of guessing that Oregon and Kelly are in big trouble, with a couple of columns suggesting Kelly will be fired.

"I hope whoever wrote that, and I didn't read it, isn't our athletic director or our president," Kelly said. "I'm very confident in everything that will happen."

It's sometimes hard to believe that Kelly has been a coach in FBS football for just four seasons. Recall that in 2006, he was the offensive coordinator at New Hampshire, a guy only a handful of offensive aficionados knew of. His two-plus years of leading Oregon have been more eventful than entire careers for many head coaches.

When asked if Kelly has shown any stress or strain during his tumultuous tenure, James almost seems amused. "He always seems the same to me," James said. "He maybe seems a little more relaxed."

James also called Kelly "a phenomenal coach." While Rich Brooks made Oregon respectable, and Mike Bellotti created a consistent winner, it's fair to say that Kelly's dynamic leadership has pushed the program to heights that no Ducks fans imagined it could reach, even mega-booster Phil Knight. And for that, James said, Kelly deserves predominant credit.

"Coach Kelly changed the whole identity of the program," said James, who redshirted in 2008, Bellotti's final season as head coach. "Everything is 100 percent different from when I was a true freshman."

What did Kelly change? "I literally mean every single thing," James said.

Of course, Brooks and Bellotti were able to avoid any major NCAA issues, too.

What's next for the Ducks? A win over LSU, a third consecutive conference title and another run at a national championship? NCAA sanctions?

Said Kelly, "I don't know what is going to happen next. No one knows what happens in the future."

One thing is likely: With Kelly and the Ducks, it at least figures to be interesting.

No one likes a tease. They ruin a perfectly good time, and in the SEC, we've seen a few teases in the past couple of seasons.

A tease team is a team that looks good during the spring or preseason camp, but somehow implodes during the season. It can also be a team that has high expectations, but just never puts it together.

Could there be one lurking in our midst as we speak? Possibly. If Alabama doesn't compete for a national championship, would you consider the season a failure? Some would. Or what if South Carolina doesn't win the East? That would be considered a major disappointment to a lot of people out there.

Here are some of those tease teams we've seen in this league over the past couple of years:

Georgia: The Bulldogs have been notorious for underachieving. In Mark Richt's second season, Georgia went 13-1, winning the SEC. The Bulldogs repeated as East champs in 2003 and won the SEC again in 2005. During that four-year span, the Bulldogs went an impressive 44-9. Georgia was bringing in some of the best recruiting classes in the SEC and it seemed like the Bulldogs would regularly compete for a national championship. However, Georgia has had double-digit victories just twice since 2005 and hasn't made it back to the SEC championship. Last season was the ultimate low point when the Bulldogs went 6-7, the first losing season since going 5-6 in 1996. This season, Georgia has a slew of talent, thanks to a stellar recruiting class that featured a group of Georgians dubbed the "Dream Team." If not for injuries and attrition on the offensive line and at running back, the Bulldogs would be battling South Carolina for the role of preseason favorite in the East. But there is talent to make a run. Can the Dawgs scrap the underachieving bug in 2011?

Ole Miss: Recent Ole Miss teams have been a little disappointing after that deadly preseason hype. After Houston Nutt's impressive 9-4 first season -- a season in which the Rebels upset eventual national champion Florida and won six straight games to end the season -- many had the Rebels competing for much more than just back-to-back Cotton Bowls. The Rebels entered the season ranked eighth in the country and rose as high as fourth before faltering during the middle of the season and losing to Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl. However, Ole Miss won its second straight Cotton Bowl. Last season, Ole Miss wasn't picked to bring home any trophies, but the 4-8 season was far from what was expected. The Rebels touted a much-heralded defense and brought in former Oregon standout Jeremiah Masoli to run the offense. Neither lived up to expectations and Ole Miss won just one conference game.

Florida: It's not like Florida consistently underachieved under Urban Meyer, but in 2009, everyone and their mother had Florida playing in back-to-back national championships. The Gators had what some considered Florida's best defense ever and had Tim Tebow back for his senior season. Even without Percy Harvin and Louis Murphy, many figured Florida's offense would be fine. Well, the offense was rarely explosive or intimidating and the Gators were eventually blown out by Alabama in the SEC championship. Florida throttled Cincinnati in the Sugar Bowl, going 13-1, but most of the Gator Nation's excitement left when those national championship hopes were destroyed. Before 2010, people expected John Brantley to blow up Florida's record books with his passing numbers, while running another explosive Meyer offense. Along with a mighty recruiting class, Florida had the look of a SEC contender. However, Brantley never fit into the spread attack and Florida's offense limped through an 8-5 season that included a blowout loss to Florida State, the first to the Seminoles since 2003.

Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt has three quarterback candidates, all of them transfers, competing to start for the Rebels this season in the place of Jeremiah Masoli, also a transfer.

There is a pattern there, isn’t there? Nutt said he doesn’t have a long record of taking transfers. He took Masoli, kicked off the Oregon team, to fill a hole last season. Masoli, without the benefit of spring practice and with a very young team, led the Rebels to a 4-8 finish.

This season, the candidates are West Virginia transfer Barry Bernetti, Louisville transfer (via Iowa Western CC) Zack Stoudt, and junior college transfer Randall Mackey, who redshirted last season.

Nutt said he would prefer to make a decision early in August instead of late and would prefer to play one quarterback.

It can be awkward for any transfer to knit himself seamlessly into the fabric of a team. When the transfer is a quarterback, who parachutes in to compete for a leadership position, the burden is doubly difficult.

“What I try to tell them,” Nutt said, “is, ‘Hey, be the best teammate you can be. The ball? You’re a good athlete. That’s going to come. If you win your teammates over by being a servant, by being a worker, that’s going to help you slip in. That transition will be so much easier if you do those.’”

Nutt said he has been impressed by how well Brunetti has eased into a leadership role on and off the field. Stoudt, he said, has made great strides. Last week, Nutt went on and on about Mackey’s gifts on the field. Nutt, ever the optimist, sounds confident the Rebels will find a talented quarterback this fall. Coming off a 4-8 season that Nutt said he could see coming when he took the job, the Rebels need to rebound.

1. So here’s who Russell Wilson reminds me of -- Cliff Lee. The decision of the former NC State quarterback to enroll at Wisconsin for his senior season is the closest thing to a baseball trade deadline deal that college football will ever see. Whether or not Wilson has the effect on the Badgers that Lee had on the ’09 Phillies, I don’t know. But in going to Wisconsin, Wilson has a lot better chance of playing for a title than he would have on a young team at Auburn, which also wooed him.

2. Before swooning for the Badgers now that Wilson is wearing their shade of red, take a deep breath. Wilson’s arrival could make the Badgers a favorite to repeat in the Big Ten, but there are a couple of ifs. Wilson has to make an adjustment to the Wisconsin offense. He also has only two months to bond with a locker room full of players he hasn’t met. That proved difficult for Jeremiah Masoli at Ole Miss a year ago.

3. The series of the top 50 college players who failed to make a splash in the NFL displays its own generation gap. The players in the first half of the 20th century didn’t play professionally because they wanted to start their careers. That’s how little pro football offered financially and otherwise. Once TV infused the NFL with money, however, the players on the list got there by not playing as well on Sunday as they did on Saturday. There’s a big difference.

DESTIN, Fla. – On paper, you’d assume the Jeremiah Masoli experiment at Ole Miss was a failure.

The Rebels went 4-8, including an embarrassing 49-48 loss to Jacksonville State at home. And while Ole Miss averaged 30.6 points per game, Masoli passed for 2,039 yards with 14 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.

It just wasn’t a banner year in Oxford.

But when coach Houston Nutt puts the paper down and throws the record aside, he’s very pleased with the job Masoli did in his only season at quarterback with the Rebels.

Arriving under controversial terms after run-ins with the law forced his dismissal from Oregon, Nutt took a ton of ridicule for his decision to recruit and sign Masoli in 2010.

During the first day of the SEC spring meetings in Destin, Fla., Nutt glowed about Masoli and the role he played at Ole Miss last season.

“Not a better guy that I’ve met in just a one-year time,” Nutt said Tuesday. “I’d do it again.

“He was a class act and I know he made mistakes out there [on the field] but boy he came in and helped our locker room.

“He did right by us.”

With a team struggling for leadership last fall, Masoli was the one who stepped up to guide the team behind the scenes. This year, Nutt will be breaking in yet another new quarterback, but the new guy won’t be as experienced as Masoli.

The Rebels will have redshirt junior Randall Mackey, junior college transfer Zack Stoudt and West Virginia transfer Barry Brunetti competing for the starting spot this fall. Mackey and Brunetti are the leaders.

Mackey impressed the most at the beginning of the spring, but Brunetti made the strongest push at the end, leading Nutt to currently favor Brunetti, who has the only Division 1 experience.

“If we played tonight, Brunetti would probably go out there first tonight,” Nutt said. “But we’re not playing tonight.”

Regardless of who gets the nod, Nutt is hoping the new starter takes the path Masoli took when he arrived. Watching how Masoli acted and how he prepared, Nutt said he has a better handle on how to deal with this season’s first-year quarterback.

The first thing Nutt wants to do is drill the notion of enhancing their work ethic into each one. That was the staple of Masoli’s character with the Rebels, and Nutt is hoping that trend continues with his new, younger gunslingers.

“Some of them can handle it,” he said. “Some of them it may be a little bit harder transition.

“[Masoli] wanted to be accepted by his peers and his teammates and he did it with work ethic. I think that’s key.”

It's not often that NC State has something to offer the Pac-12, but more than a few of you apparently think the Wolfpack and coach Tom O'Brien have a gift for the Conference of Quarterbacks: Russell Wilson.

Some of you say, "Who?" Others exclaim, "Go west Russell! Go west!"

Wilson, as ESPN.com's Ryan McGee points out , is presently the second baseman for the Class A Asheville Tourists of the South Atlantic League. But in a previous incarnation he was a dual-threat quarterback for the Wolfpack, one who led the ACC in total offense (3,563 yards passing, 435 rushing).

And O'Brien has released him from his scholarship, which means he can play anywhere free-and-clear next fall (other than another ACC team or NC State nonconference foe).

Hey, California and UCLA: Is that something you might be interested in?

Sure, it might make sense for Wilson to remain in the region, which means the SEC. And South Carolina and Auburn are two schools that might be interested in Wilson. But what about a sense of adventure? Los Angeles or the Bay Area would broaden your horizons, Russell.

There is a catch: baseball. Wilson is under contract with the Colorado Rockies and, as McGee points out, they don't seem terribly flexible about allowing Wilson to skip off this summer for a preseason camp, on the East or West Coast.

[Rockies senior director of player development Marc] Gustafson said he had read the stories and the comments made by Wilson. Asked if he expected Wilson to play for the Tourists until the season ends Sept. 5, he said, "Absolutely."

Sept. 5, obviously, means that Wilson wouldn't be available for the opening of the season on Sept. 3. Would any team be willing to bring him to town, despite missing fall camp and the first game? Well, stranger things have happened but it's not a great formula for locker room chemistry.

Of course, desperate times at quarterback call for desperate measures. And there are always loopholes and politicking that could get Wilson aboard sooner. If Wilson really wants to play football, he will.

The odds, though, seem remote, particularly of him ending up in the Pac-12. But in January 2010, who would have thought that Jeremiah Masoli would end up the starting quarterback at Ole Miss and not Oregon?

Ole Miss is now down to three quarterbacks this spring.

Wednesday night, junior quarterback Nathan Stanley informed coach Houston Nutt that he is leaving the program.

The Jackson (Miss.) Clarion-Ledger first reported Stanley’s decision to leave Ole Miss for unspecified reasons.

Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach David Lee confirmed to ESPN.com that Stanley was leaving, but wouldn’t comment further on why the junior decided to part ways with the university.

Nutt addressed Stanley’s situation in a statement from the university.

“After meeting tonight, Nathan has decided to leave the program,” Nutt said. “I wish him the best and I am going to help him find a new school. I appreciate all that he has done for Ole Miss and the type of student-athlete he has been.”

Stanley won the starting job last spring, before Jeremiah Masoli transferred in from Oregon. Stanley started in the season-opening loss to Jacksonville State, passing for 133 yards and three touchdowns on 6-of-10 passing. However, he lost his starting job to Masoli afterward and played in just three more games, finishing the season with 261 yards, three touchdowns and an interception.

With Masoli gone, Stanley figured to get the majority of the action at quarterback this spring, but improvements by junior college transfer Randall Mackey, who redshirted last season, junior college transfer Zack Stoudt, and West Virginia transfer Barry Brunetti diminished his reps.

Mackey has recently pushed ahead in the quarterback race, while Stoudt and Brunetti continue to make solid strides behind him.

Brunetti, who transferred to Ole Miss in January, is still waiting to be granted a waiver by the NCAA in order to eligible to play this fall.

Lee said that he doesn’t plan to name a quarterback at the conclusion of spring and probably won’t decide on that until the middle of two-a-days this summer.

For now, Lee is anxious to see what his trio can do during Saturday’s spring game.

“I’ve got three unique guys and I’m excited about all three of them,“ he said.

“I’m really excited to watch Brunetti and Stoudt and Mackey this Saturday, with the crowd and some people there. All three of these guys are in the hunt (for the starting spot).”

Coaches love talking about explosion plays. You want to get a lot of them and give up very few.

We looked at offensive explosion plays -- plays of 20 or more yards -- on Tuesday and defenses that prevented explosion plays on Wednesday. Thursday we looked at explosion plays in terms of rushing offense and rushing defense. Today, we'll look at explosion plays in terms of passing numbers.

So here's how the Pac-12 stacked up in 2010 (again, thanks to ESPN Stats & Information). The number to the left is national rank. The number to the right is the total number of explosion plays in the passing game in 2010.

14. Stanford... 48
18. Arizona... 46
37. Oregon... 43
40. Arizona State... 42
40. Utah... 42
54. Oregon State... 38
61. Washington State... 37
65. USC... 36
80. Colorado... 32
91. Washington... 30
100. California... 28
120. UCLA... 11

No surprise Stanford is on top with quarterback Andrew Luck, but Arizona at No. 2 proves that Nick Foles isn't just a dink-and-dunk passer. Some might use this as further evidence that USC's Matt Barkley and Washington's Jake Locker were "overrated."

Oh my, UCLA. Very, very bad.

Some other thoughts.

• UCLA was dead last in the country, and only Army in 2008 -- six! -- produced fewer explosion plays in the passing game over the past three seasons.
• To put the awfulness of the Bruins' downfield passing game into perspective: Every conference team more than doubled the number of passing explosion plays the Bruins produced, and Colorado was one play short of having NINE teams at least triple the Bruins.
• And the blame shouldn't fall on Kevin Prince: In 2009, the Bruins produced 35 explosion plays in the passing game with him as the starter for much of the year.
• Keep in mind that Oregon got 43 passing plays of 20 or more yards with a first-year starter at quarterback. Even though the Ducks lose their top two receivers, don't be surprised if that number goes up in 2011 in Darron Thomas' junior season.
• Oh, and anyone remember Jeremiah Masoli? Last year, the Ducks ranked 67th with 36 explosion plays in the passing game.
• Downfield passing was a clear area of improvement for Foles in 2010. The year before, the Wildcats connected on just 31 passing plays of 20 or more yards.
• In 2009, California had 48 explosion plays in the passing game, which ranked 18th in the nation and No. 1 in the Pac-10. Discuss, Cal fans.
• In 2008, with Luck redshirting behind Tavita Pritchard, the Cardinal had only 18 explosion plays in the passing game, which ranked 113th in the nation. In Luck's first year as the starter, 2009, that number perked up to 47, which ranked 25th in the nation.
• Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett has his critics, but over the past two years the Razorbacks produced 123 explosion plays in the passing game. In 2008, they had 45.
• In 2008, Tulsa had 82 pass plays of 20 or more yards, most over the past three years. In its 14-game schedule, that means the Golden Hurricane averaged just under six such plays per game. Tulsa is also the only program to rank in the top 10 each of the past three years.

But does piling up explosion plays in the passing game correlate to winning? Short answer: Yes. Here's the top 10 in 2010 with the team's record in parentheses to the right.

1. Hawaii... 80 (10-4)
2. Boise State... 63 (12-1)
3. Arkansas... 62 (10-3)
4. San Diego State... 60 (9-4)
5. Oklahoma... 59 (12-2)
5. Oklahoma State... 59 (11-2)
7. Tulsa... 57 (10-3)
8. Tennessee... 54 (6-7)
9. UAB... 53 (4-8)
10. North Carolina State... 52 (9-4)

That's two losing teams -- though Tennessee was a bowl team -- and eight with at least nine wins and five with 10 or more. Nice mix of AQ and non-AQ teams, too.

Now on to defense, starting with the Pac-12.

The number to the left is national rank. The number to the right is the total number of passing explosion plays yielded in 2010.

6. California... 25
16. Stanford... 29
23. Washington... 31
27. Arizona... 32
27. Colorado... 32
27. Arizona State... 32
41. Oregon...33
41. Washington State... 33
58. UCLA... 36
91. Oregon State... 41
96. Utah... 42
102. USC... 44

Well, USC gave up 30 TD passes, most in the conference by five, so the Trojans in the cellar shouldn't be a surprise. Utah is completely rebuilding its secondary heading into 2011 -- so does that many Utes fans feel better or worse about their standing here? A little surprised Washington did well in this measure. And this is another reason for Cal fans to feel good about defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast.

Some other thoughts:

• First of all, the difference between No. 23 and No. 41 is two plays, so there should be a little bit of skepticism about writing too much into these numbers.
• Obviously, the Trojans' young secondary didn't do well digesting Monte Kiffin's Tampa-2 scheme in Year 1.
• USC gave up 30 explosion passing plays in 2009 and just 14 in 2008, which is the lowest total over the past three years by six.
• Stanford's pass defense was a big question heading into 2010. Why? In 2009, it gave up 44 passing plays of 20 or more yards. So the improvement this past season was dramatic, and probably one of the big reasons the Cardinal defense took a huge step forward.
• Tip of the cap to Washington State: In 2009, it gave up 47 explosion plays in the passing game, which ranked 110th in the nation. So the improvement in 2010 was dramatic. Of course, the Cougars did give up 29 explosion plays in the running game, which ranked 117th in the nation.
• Utah gave up 28 explosion passing plays in 2009, so there was fairly significant regression in 2010.
• No team ranked in the top 10 three consecutive years, though TCU, Florida and Ohio State consistently ranked highly.
• In 2008, Nevada gave up 70 explosion plays in the passing game. That's 11 more than the second worst total over the past three years. That means Wolf Pack fans had to endure 5.4 big passing plays per game thrown against their defense. Still, Nevada did finish 7-6.

But does limiting passing explosion plays on defense correlate to winning? Short answer: Pretty much. Here's the top 10 in 2010 with the team's record in parentheses to the right.

1. Pittsburgh... 20 (8-5)
2. LSU.. 21 (11-2)
3. TCU... 22 (13-0)
4. Kent State... 23 (5-7)
5. West Virginia... 24 (9-4)
5. Texas... 24 (5-7)
6. Florida... 25 (8-5)
6. California... 25 (5-7)
6. Nebraska... 25 (10-4)
6. Temple... 25 (8-4)
6. Syracuse... 25 (8-5)
6. Boise State... 25 (13-1)

Only three of these 12 teams posted losing records, and they each went 5-7. That said, four won just eight games, so success in this stat doesn't correlate to elite status. Auburn gave up 44 explosion plays in the pass game and it went 14-0 and won the national championship. Virginia Tech gave up 45 and won the ACC.

Still, here's a guess that most defensive coordinators would rather rank at the top of this list than at the bottom.

Following the lead of my esteemed blogging colleagues, I'm going to rank the 10 best stadium "atmospheres" from the Pac-10 games I covered in 2010.

Monday we ranked Nos. 10-6. Today, it's the top-five.

There are three major factors: 1. Stadium color and intensity; 2. The "bigness" of the game; 3. The quality of the game and its performances. And, obviously, I'm only ranking games I attended

5. Oregon at California: While Oregon's 15-13 victory here has been wildly miscast as a game the Ducks won because Cal screwed up a go-ahead field goal -- the kick came on the first play of the fourth quarter -- this was Oregon's closest game, the only one decided by single digits until the national championship game. And the closeness created a nice tension in Memorial Stadium as Bears fans entertained for much of the second half real visions of pulling the upset. The Ducks fourth-quarter drive that ate up the final 9:25 off the clock -- 18 plays, 17 runs -- was a thing of beauty: A good team having a bad night that nonetheless asserted its will to take control at the end.

4. Oregon at USC: More than a few folks saw this as the Ducks most worrisome potential stumbling back: A game at once-fearsome, but now just solid, USC. More than a few folks sold it as "USC's bowl game," and a couple of Trojans agreed that assessment wasn't that far off. The Trojans gave Oregon some trouble until the Ducks flicked their switch and won going away 53-32. The atmosphere in the Coliseum, at least for three quarters, was nearly what it was for big games during the Trojans recent glory days. And the torch was passed.

3. Iowa at Arizona: Forget for a moment the Wildcats' five-game losing streak to end the season. This 34-27 win over then-No. 9 Iowa felt like the Wildcats signature win under Mike Stoops, a game in which they advanced from a good program to a top-25, even top-10 program. The 'Zona Zoo went nuts when quarterback Nick Foles led a nine-play, 72-yard touchdown drive for the go-ahead points. And it went even nuttier when the Wildcats recorded three consecutive sacks when Iowa took over, needing its own clutch drive to tie.

2. Stanford at Oregon: This game was Oregon's "hello world" performance, a 52-31 shellacking of a very good Stanford team that once led 21-3. The atmosphere in Autzen Stadium as Oregon poured it on was electric. The game, played on Oct. 2, firmly established the Ducks as a national title contender and LaMichael James as a Heisman Trophy candidate. Further, it established that the Ducks were better with Darron Thomas at quarterback rather than Jeremiah Masoli. And as the season went on, and Stanford didn't lose again, this became the most impressive regular season performance by any team, other than perhaps Auburn's comeback win at Alabama.

1. BCS National Title Game: Speaks for itself: It was the biggest game of the year and one of the toughest tickets in college football history. While Auburn's 22-19 win over Oregon was a bit sloppy as a whole, the final five or so minutes were thrilling.

Here are all the games I covered in 2010-11.

Week 1: Oregon State vs. TCU (Cowboys Stadium)
Week 2: Stanford at UCLA
Week 3: Iowa at Arizona
Week 4: Oregon at Arizona State
Week 5: Stanford at Oregon
Week 6: Oregon State at Arizona
Week 7: No game
Week 8: UCLA at Oregon
Week 9: Oregon at USC
Week 10: Arizona at Stanford
Week 11: Oregon at California
Week 12: Arizona at Oregon
Week 13: Oregon at Oregon State
Bowl week: BCS National Championship game

» Power Rankings: ACC | Big 12 | Big East | Big Ten | Pac-10 | SEC | Non-AQ

Here’s a look at the final SEC power rankings for the 2010 season.

After Monday night’s Tostitos BCS National Championship Game, there’s not much drama at the top spot:

1. Auburn: The Tigers (14-0) completed a perfect season with their first national championship since 1957. Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton was the story for most of the season, both on and off the field, but the Tigers proved in their 22-19 win over Oregon on Monday that they could win even when Newton doesn’t play his best football.

2. LSU: After winning 11 games or more for the fourth time in six seasons under Les Miles, LSU (11-2) must now stave off Michigan’s run at Miles. The Mad Hatter is going to listen to what his alma mater has to say. His Tigers beat four teams that finished in the Top 25 of the final BCS standings this season and were 5-2 against nationally ranked foes. They were extremely impressive in their AT&T Cotton Bowl win over Texas A&M.

3. Alabama: As pleasing as it had to be for Alabama fans to see the Crimson Tide (10-3) destroy Michigan State in the Capital One Bowl, they’re probably wondering where that team was all season long. Nobody in the league was more talented than Alabama, but the Tide didn’t always play that way.

4. Arkansas: If only the Hogs (10-3) could have capitalized in the fourth quarter against Ohio State in the Allstate Sugar Bowl, what was a very good season could have been a great season. Arkansas beat four teams that finished in the Top 25 of the final BCS standings and was 3-3 against nationally ranked teams.

5. Mississippi State: The award for the most-improved team in the league goes to the Bulldogs (9-4). They routed Michigan in the Progressive Gator Bowl and promptly sweetened Dan Mullen’s deal. The downer was that defensive coordinator Manny Diaz got away and went to Texas.

6. South Carolina: Once again, the Gamecocks (9-5) bombed pretty badly at the end. And in doing so, Steve Spurrier finished with his sixth straight season of at least five losses or more at South Carolina. All in all, though, getting to the SEC championship game for the first time was a coup.

7. Florida: The Gators (8-5) made sure Urban Meyer went out a winner by taking care of business in the Outback Bowl against Penn State. Otherwise, this was not a season they will remember fondly in Gainesville. The offense hit rock bottom. The Gators finished 10^th in the league in total offense and tried to make a spread quarterback out of pocket passer John Brantley.

8. Georgia: What a pitiful performance by the Bulldogs (6-7) in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl. The only reason they’re not ranked even lower is because they routed Tennessee 41-14 head-to-head this season. Mark Richt is down to one last chance to get this program turned around. If the Bulldogs are not back among the SEC’s elite next year, Richt will be gone.

9. Tennessee: The Vols (6-7) were another one of those Eastern Division teams that finished with a losing record. Four of the six teams in the East had losing seasons. Tennessee didn’t get any help from the officials in its overtime loss to North Carolina in the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl, but the Vols did win four in a row to get to the postseason.

10. Kentucky: Kentucky (6-7) managed to stink it up even more in its bowl game than Georgia did, if that’s possible. The Wildcats were inept offensively in the 27-10 loss to Pittsburgh without starting quarterback Mike Hartline and weren’t good enough everywhere else to make up the difference. Other than the second-half comeback against South Carolina, it’s a season that fell short of expectations.

11. Ole Miss: About the only thing the Rebels (4-8) won all year was the appeal with the NCAA for quarterback transfer Jeremiah Masoli to be able to play prior to the first week of the season. After that, it was all downhill. The Rebels lost at home to FCS foe Jacksonville State in the opener and also lost by two touchdowns at home to Vanderbilt. Defensive struggles persisted all season long.

12. Vanderbilt: The Commodores (2-10) at least won an SEC game this season after going winless in the league the previous season. Robbie Caldwell was already in a tough spot from the outset, and then the injuries set in. The Commodores struggled at quarterback, couldn’t finish drives and also saw their normally reliable defense suffer. Caldwell stepped down at the end of the season, giving way to former Maryland offensive coordinator James Franklin as Vanderbilt’s head coach.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Oregon is No. 1 in the nation in scoring and No. 1 in total offense. Auburn is No. 4 in scoring and No. 7 in total offense, so the Tigers aren't so far behind.

But when you talk about the Auburn offense, it starts and finishes with this: Cam Newton.

When you talk about the Oregon offense, it starts with running back LaMichael James and then it goes on and on and on.

What's toughest about the stopping the Ducks offense?

"Probably our tempo," center Jordan Holmes said. "We just keep going and going and going. Even when things aren't going as planned, we just keep doing our thing and eventually the defense gives way."

Agreed Auburn linebacker Craig Stevens, "It's always hard to emulate an offense going that fast." Added Tigers linebacker Josh Bynes, "Their pace is unmatched by anybody in the nation. I haven't seen a pace like that against any opponent this year."

No, it's not the tempo. The tempo is challenging, but Auburn's offense plays with fast tempo, too. So then what is the hardest thing for a defense to deal with?

"The misdirection," Oregon linebacker Spencer Paysinger said. "[QB Darron Thomas] is really good at hiding the ball with his fakes and his play-actions."

But that's not really it, either. It's the pressure the Ducks put on a defense to maintain gap discipline while dealing with a fast-tempo offense that uses a lot of misdirection.

"That's where they get people," Auburn defensive coordinator Ted Roof said. "You can see people take their eyes off them, people missing gaps, and it's a touchdown, not a 4-yard gain anymore." Agreed Stevens, "It's their ability to exploit defenses. Anytime a guy mis-fits, it seems like a guy is always able to find that hole and hit it and it turns into a big run or big pass."

Oregon is a dominant running team -- 304 yards per game -- that isn't too shabby throwing the ball -- 29 touchdown passes, No. 16 in the nation in passing efficiency. And it has star players; see James, a Heisman Trophy finalist and the nation's leading rusher.

But when you talk about the Oregon offense in terms of its most potent weapon, it's really about how everything blends together. While even the Ducks can't agree on what makes the offense most difficult to stop, the buy-in is complete under coach Chip Kelly, the mastermind behind the scheme. The players' confidence suggests they see their offensive success as, well, inevitable.

"We are in a situation right now where our guys believe 100 percent in what they are doing," coordinator Mark Helfrich said.

That starts not with James, but with quarterback Darron Thomas. James calls the sophomore, first-year starter the "point guard of the offense."

Thomas was expected to be No. 3 this year behind starter Jeremiah Masoli and senior backup Nate Costa. But when Masoli was kicked off the team, Thomas was a surprise winner in a close quarterback competition with Costa.

Even as the starter, early in the season he was expected to play the role of caretaker and distributor. He's become much more than that. His passing numbers were significantly better than Masoli's in 2009, and he earned second-team All-Pac-10 honors.

Oregon players thought Thomas was going to be good. Just not this good.

"He's done some things this year that have definitely surprised all of us," Holmes said.

Thomas' top target is Jeff Maehl, who doesn't look the part -- his haircut inspired more than a few "Jeff Spicoli" references from reporters meeting him for the first time. He caught 12 touchdown passes this year, a number of them fairly spectacular.

But he's one of nine Ducks who've caught TD passes.

Further, the rushing attack isn't only about James. Four other Ducks rushed for more than 200 yards. Thomas and backup running back Kenjon Barner combined for more than 1,000 yards and 11 TDs on their own. Seven different Ducks scored rushing TDs.

Then there's the offensive line. Oh, those poor, poor Ducks linemen. They just aren't big enough to get the job done.

"We are probably the smallest offensive line in the Pac-10," Holmes said. "We're outweighed by 10 to 40 pounds on a weekly basis. So [the national championship game] is no new thing."

That itty-bitty line -- average weight: 296 pounds -- led one of the nation's best rushing attacks while yielding only eight sacks, fifth fewest in the nation.

It's fair to say that Auburn's defense is going to win the "eye test" with Oregon's offense. The Tigers look better getting off the bus, as reporters like to say. But Roof thinks the Ducks look pretty good on film.

"On top of being really, really talented, they have a great scheme, they're well coached and they're very disciplined," he said.

That's the Ducks' best offensive weapon: The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

You should find the Tostitos BCS National Championship Game terribly offensive. If you love defense. But for folks who celebrate irresistible forces while finding immovable objects dull, this one should be a grand affair.

If both top-ranked Auburn and No. 2 Oregon hit their season averages on Jan. 10, fans will see 92 points and more than 1,000 yards of offense, including 591 yards rushing. The matchup features the Heisman Trophy winner and the nation's most efficient passer: Tigers quarterback Cam Newton. And it features the nation's leading rusher, Oregon's LaMichael James, who is a unanimous All-American and Heisman finalist.

It features teams that run and pass well. It features teams that don't make a lot of mistakes. It features teams that overwhelm a defense with talent, tempo and creativity.

Finally, the game will showcase two mad scientists of offense who had 37 days without distraction to prepare schematic monstrosities in their underground lairs: Auburn offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn and Oregon coach Chip Kelly.

Muwhahahaha!

The scoreboard should be spinning for a pair of ludicrous speed attacks that had very few off-days this season.

Oh, there are the naysayers. You will get tut-tuts from those who claim "defense wins championships." Some will point out that in previous BCS title games, great offenses have fizzled out.

There's Florida State in 2001, when Chris Weinke & Co. were shut out in a 13-2 defeat to Oklahoma. The Seminoles averaged 549 yards and 42 points per game that year. And there's Oklahoma in 2009, which got stumped by Florida, 24-14. The Sooners averaged 51 points and 548 yards per game that year. Both of those offenses entered the title game being lauded as historically great. Not so much afterwards, though.

And Heisman Trophy winners often go splat in BCS title games, see Weinke, Eric Crouch, Jason White, Troy Smith and Sam Bradford.

Still, the winner of the BCS championship scored more than 30 points in eight of 12 games and more than 40 four times. Potent offenses do show up. Further, in most of the cases when offensive powerhouses have been exposed in the championship game, there's been a reasonable explanation: They faced an elite defense laden with NFL prospects. That is not the case with Auburn and Oregon.

At least that's the perception, one that frustrates Oregon fans. The Ducks rank 12th in the nation in scoring defense, sixth in pass efficiency defense, 16th in run defense and 25th in total defense. So that is pretty darn close to an elite defense, even though the Ducks lack star power. Moreover, Oregon surrendered just 4.53 yards per play, which ranks seventh in the nation and is better than any team the Tigers faced (yes, even Alabama).

The Ducks, however, did face an FCS team and seven FBS offenses ranked 58th in the nation or worse in scoring, including four ranked 96th or worse. They faced only one elite offense in Stanford. The Cardinal scored 31 points and piled up 518 yards, but were shut out in the second half.

Auburn ranks 54th in scoring defense, 55th in total defense and 75th in passing efficiency defense. The Tigers, however, are very good against the run, ranking 10th. They faced three offenses ranked in the top 25 in scoring -- Kentucky, Arkansas and Alabama -- and those foes scored 34, 43 and 27 points, respectively.

Last season's Rose Bowl might offer ideas for both defenses. For the Tigers, the Buckeyes showed a blueprint for how a physical front seven can stymie the Ducks' running attack with penetration, gap integrity and discipline. (Ducks fans would counter that Ohio State's defense looked great because quarterback Jeremiah Masoli couldn't hit the side of a barn in the passing game that afternoon). For the Ducks' veteran defense, it knows what it's like to play against a big, fast quarterback after seeing Terrelle Pryor post what continues to be the best game of his career.

So there is hope for the defenses, though it's hard to imagine both offenses sputtering and the winning total ending up in the 20s.

Of course, even if the offenses churn up yardage, as expected, that doesn't mean a defense won't win this championship. One of the two defenses is going to get more stops than the other, either through forcing turnovers or winning third down (and fourth, both teams aren't afraid to go for it).

Just don't be surprised if you don't need two hands to count the total number of punts.

Auburn Tigers (13-0) vs. Oregon Ducks (12-0)

Jan. 10, 8:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)

Oregon take by Pac-10 blogger Ted Miller: Oregon quarterback Darron Thomas keeps things mostly close to the vest with reporters. But when a group of them expressed skepticism when running back LaMichael James said people doubted the Ducks, Thomas piped in with one word: "Masoli."

That's fair. When quarterback Jeremiah Masoli was kicked off the team during the offseason, many thought the Ducks’ chances of contending for the national title were no longer an issue. They were still a Pac-10 front-runner, but only by a little. At that point, in fact, most thought senior Nate Costa would win the starting job, not Thomas. But Thomas not only won the job, he gave the Ducks an upgrade at the position. And that has been the key this season.

Thomas and Oregon used the Ducks’ explosive, high-tempo, spread-option offense to wear down foes. They've outscored opponents by nearly 31 points a game this year. Only one team, California, came within single digits of the Ducks.

The Ducks made their first national statement with a blowout win at Tennessee, but their overwhelming 52-31 victory over Stanford proved to be a signature victory, one that grew in stature as the year went on because it would be the Cardinal's only defeat. The Ducks trailed 21-3, but then exploded and ran away with the game.

Oregon has owned the second half this season, outscoring foes 277-77, and it's yielded just 24 fourth-quarter points. The underrated defense is ranked 14th in the nation in scoring.

---

Auburn take by SEC blogger Chris Low: Outside of Florida and the junior college ranks, nobody really knew who Cam Newton was when Auburn opened preseason practice back in August. Even the Tigers’ coaches weren’t completely sure what they had.

Everybody knows now.

Newton, who started his career at Florida and then detoured through Blinn College, was the driving force in leading the Tigers (13-0) to their first-ever appearance in the Tostitos BCS National Championship Game. The front-runner to win the Heisman Trophy, Newton passed for 28 touchdowns and ran for 20 touchdowns, taking turns beating teams with his arm and his legs.

He’s coming off an MVP performance in the SEC championship game where he threw four touchdown passes and ran for two more in Auburn’s 56-17 dismantling of South Carolina. In his last five games, he’s thrown 15 touchdown passes and just one interception.

Auburn has been comfortable outscoring teams all season. The Tigers are sixth nationally in scoring offense, averaging 42.7 points per game.

Their defense has been vulnerable against the pass, as evidenced by the fact that they rank 105th nationally in pass defense. But those numbers are deceiving, because the Tigers have made a living out of coming up with key stops and forcing turnovers in the second half. In their last two games against South Carolina and Alabama, they've given up a total of two field goals in the second half.