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Oregon's new quarterback has to adjust to a new kind of football
It's become pretty common now to see college teams turn to graduate transfer quarterbacks to lead their teams. Many have made huge impacts on their new programs.
One just helped Alabama win a national title (Jake Coker). Another, Vernon Adams, proved to be a godsend for an Oregon team searching for answers after Marcus Mariota left for the NFL. The Ducks were 7-1 when Adams played the majority of the game and just 2-3 when he didn't. Quite a statement for a guy who didn't get to practice with him new teammates until after the start of fall camp -- much less have spring football to get acclimated.
Adams came from FCS powerhouse Eastern Washington and obviously didn't have too much trouble making the transition. This year, the Ducks have gone back to the FCS well for another graduate transfer quarterback. This one is Montana State's Dakota Prukop, who arrived at Oregon in January.
The 6-foot-2, 200-pound Prukop threw for 3,025 yards, completed 63 percent of his passes and had a 28-10 touchdown-to-interception ratio for the Bobcats last season. He also ran for 797 yards and 11 touchdowns.
One of the significant adjustments Prukop told me he's had to make was something that probably gets overlooked a lot about playing quarterback.
Getting a grip on a new type of football.
Adams told Prukop he also had to adjust going from a Wilson ball at his old school to Oregon's Nike football. Prukop admitted it has taken him some time -- and lots of throws -- to get used to it. Last month, while he was in Southern California on spring break, Prukop showed FOX Sports exactly what that entails:
