@russillopod Bo Nix speaks on being a QB in the SEC vs the Pac-12. #nfldraft #oregon #auburn #secfootball #pac12 #russillopod ♬ original sound - The Ryen Russillo Podcast
Bo Nix has been asked to make comparisons since the day he transferred to Oregon from Auburn.
Last week, the trend continued. The former college quarterback - for both the Tigers and the Ducks - is now preparing for an NFL career, he was asked the difference between being a starter in the SEC and out West.
“In the sense, the hostility and maybe the unhealthy pressure that is added to 18- to 22-year-olds by outside noise and fans,” the Alabama native told The Ryen Russillo Podcast. “Like it’s almost like an unhealthy obsession in the South. I was that way growing up. I thought it was life-or-death football.”
In three seasons at Auburn, Nix passed for more than 7,250 yards, 39 touchdowns and 16 interceptions.
RELATED: Nix can be himself at Oregon
Nix spent the first three seasons of his college career at Auburn, following in the footsteps of his father, former Auburn quarterback Patrick Nix. Ahead of the 2022 season, Nix opted to transfer to Oregon, spending his final two seasons with the Ducks.
“You move out here, and you play the game as hard as you can,” he said. “You got great passion for the game. It’s a little bit more laid back in a way.”
Nix threw for more than 4,500 yards and 45 touchdowns, with only three interceptions this past season while being named a Heisman finalist.
“I think that’s the difference, quite frankly, is what is put into college football in the South,” Nix explained. “Then, how out here football is just a game, and we want to find the joy in it.”
He told On3 last week he was the same player at both schools.
“Same guy,” he said. “Same toughness. Same competitiveness. I haven’t really developed that much physically, either. Same guy. I just think that less opportunity and less freedom at Auburn. It was just kind of not as flexible as what I was able to be when I got to Oregon and really use my strengths and go out there and perform at a high level.”
Mark Heim is a reporter for The Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Mark_Heim. He can be heard on “The Opening Kickoff” on WNSP-FM 105.5 FM in Mobile or on the free Sound of Mobile App from 6 to 9 a.m. daily.