After just two weeks of practice, Vernon Adams has emerged as the replacement for Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota at Oregon.
The transfer from Eastern Washington, who only formally joined the Ducks team a couple of weeks ago, was listed atop the Ducks' opening depth chart, released Friday. Adams starred for three years at Eastern Washington -- which plays at the FCS level -- before leaving for Oregon as a graduate transfer. His prolific career at EWU (more than 10,000 passing yards and 110 touchdown passes in three seasons) has Ducks fans' hopes high that the dropoff at the position from Mariota will be limited.
Adams beat out Mariota's long-time backup, Jeff Lockie, for the starting nod.
The decision ends one of several quarterback competitions that are still brewing at top programs including Ohio State, Florida State, Alabama and Georgia.
Here are six other things we learned around college football camps on Friday:
2. Shedding labels. West Virginia senior safety Karl Joseph has a reputation as a vicious hitter, and was rated CFB 24/7's most physical player in the college game. But his path to the NFL requires more diverse attributes, WVU secondary coach Joe DeForesttold MetroNews. Specifically, Joseph is looking to boost his draft stock by improving two things: man coverage and open-field tackling. Getting labeled as a guy who projects as a "box safety" isn't what Joseph wants. Just ask Landon Collins.
3. Starting over. Illinois players found out Friday that offensive coordinator Bill Cubit will take over the program on an interim basis after the firing of head coach **Tim Beckman**. It's a lot to absorb for players just seven days before the team's season opener against Kent State. To whatever extent the findings against Beckman ring true, however, the players' feeling was likely one of relief.
4. Getting ahead. NFL clubs aren't waiting around to do their homework on Alabama LB Reggie Ragland.
5. RichRod does RichRod. Arizona coach Rich Rodriguez, who certainly prides himself as a prominent member of the "player's coach" fraternity, was 100 percent sure to weigh-in on Virginia Tech's newly discontinued system of fines for players. His comment: "We haven't done that, and we wouldn't do that."
6. Riding what? Arkansas freshman TE C.J. O'Grady, 18, was arrested for DWI while operating a scooter. Initially pulled over for a faulty tail light, O'Grady registered a 0.099 blood-alcohol level. Arkansas' legal threshhold for a minor is 0.02.
7. Captain Buckeyes. Ohio State named six captains for the Buckeyes' defending national championship team, including QB J.T. Barrett and former QB Braxton Miller, who is now at receiver. Could that be a hint about who will win the Buckeyes' quarterback job between Barrett and Cardale Jones? Don't be so sure. After all, Oklahoma's Trevor Knight was recently named a captain, too, after losing the quarterback battle to Baker Mayfield.
*Follow Chase Goodbread on Twitter **@ChaseGoodbread*.
