Austin, TX
What Austin Novosad’s coaches say about Oregon football QB
Oregon football coach Dan Lanning talks after spring game
Oregon football coach Dan Lanning speaks after the Ducks’ annual spring game at Autzen Stadium in Eugene.
Nothing has been given to Austin Novosad.
Despite possessing arm talent like his coaches had never seen, even as a middle-schooler, Novosad didn’t start as a freshman at Dripping Springs High School near Austin, Texas.
Novosad didn’t start the first game of his sophomore season, either.
After subbing in during the second game of his sophomore season, Novosad looked in complete command of the offense, sprinted for a 40-yard touchdown run and gave his coaches every indication they made a mistake by not playing him in Week 1.
“That first opportunity in varsity, I think you’re like, he can be special,” Dripping Springs head coach Galen Zimmerman said. “I feel like he had some good guys around him that were great athletes, and it was just kind of like everything clicked when he got in the game at quarterback.
“From there, he never came out of the game again for the next three years.”
Novosad has thrived in a reserve role at Oregon under the tutelage of NFL quarterbacks Bo Nix and Dillon Gabriel, and despite high-profile transfers in and out of the program, is in a full-blown competition with Dante Moore to be Oregon’s starter in 2025.
Here’s what coaches who have known Novosad the longest say about the third-year Duck QB.
‘He’s by far the top arm I’ve ever coached’: Oregon football’s Austin Novosad starred at Texas high school
Even as a middle-schooler, the way the ball flew out of Novosad’s hand impressed his future high school coaches.
When he first joined Dripping Springs’ program as a freshman, the tall and lanky Novosad popped in practice.
Novosad was rewarded for his patience as a sophomore, named his district’s offensive newcomer of the year after leading the Tigers to a 9-4 record and the second round of the state playoffs while completing 65.7% of his passes for 2,673 yards and 35 touchdowns with just four interceptions.
He had two seven-touchdown games that season.
“He’s by far the top arm I’ve ever coached,” offensive coordinator Al Pena said. “I’ve been coaching 17 years, and I’ve coached some good ones.”
Pena, a former Oklahoma State quarterback in the mid-2000s, said Novosad immediately commanded respect in the locker room, even at a young age.
The senior Novosad beat out at quarterback was disappointed but understood and moved to receiver to complement the budding QB. Every starting receiver worked out extra with Novosad after practice.
“Austin was one of those guys that the guys seemed to gravitate towards.
He was a quiet leader. He was always working hard. He was always wanting,” Pena said. “I mean, he was just a junkie for it. He loves football … he just seemed to be a magnet for wanting to get guys to want to work hard and to want to be a part of what we had going on … You wanted to play with him.”
The success only continued to mount for Novosad as a full-time starter his junior season.
He was named an Elite 11 finalist after earning third-team all-state honors and guiding his team to a 10-1 record and the state playoffs again. He was his district’s MVP, completing 63.6% of his passes for 3,399 yards and 40 touchdowns.
As a senior, Novosad was a top-10 quarterback prospect with numerous offers. Dripping Springs made the 6A state playoff quarterfinals and finished with a 12-2 record as Novosad tossed 39 touchdowns.
He finished his high school career with 8,983 yards passing, 114 touchdowns and just 18 interceptions.
A football junkie: Austin Novosad learned from Oregon greats Bo Nix, Dillon Gabriel while waiting his turn
A verbal commit to Baylor for a full year, Novosad flipped his commitment and signed with Oregon in December 2022 after the Ducks hired offensive coordinator Will Stein, who had a strong relationship with Novosad while serving as a playcaller at UTSA.
Dripping Springs’ coaches told Novosad what he would be getting in to when he flipped his commitment to the Ducks.
Nix had announced his plans to return for a senior season at Oregon in 2023 and both Zimmerman and Pena told Novosad the Ducks would bring in the best of the best every season to compete at quarterback.
Novosad talked repeatedly throughout the spring about his relationship with Nix, now the starting quarterback of the Denver Broncos, and what he learned from the five-year collegiate veteran in 2023.
His former coaches said Nix and Gabriel, who arrived through the transfer portal in 2024, left a massive imprint on the way Novosad operates as a college quarterback, along with his work with Stein.
“Dillon and Bo were completely different quarterbacks, but one thing that was the super similar was just the preparation and that’s one thing I really learned from both of them,” Novosad said in the spring. “They executed at a really high level.”
Novosad returned home to Dripping Springs in May and broke down film and concepts he’s learned at Oregon with Pena.
Zimmerman said sometimes he’ll walk into his office with a new play drawn on the board and know exactly where it came from.
“I’m learning from him at this point and it’s awesome,” Pena said. “It definitely is a full-circle moment as a coach.”
None of that is new for Novosad, who has always used every opportunity he could to learn, develop and get better. He’s taken it to “another level” at Oregon, per his coaches.
“He studies as hard as anybody,” Stein said. “He is an extremely process-oriented guy, which is hard in our business, because everything is result-driven and it’s what everybody wants: results and playing time and touchdowns, where he’s the opposite.
“That doesn’t make him less competitive than anybody else. I think he just understands that there is a process and when his time is out there to shine, I believe he’s gonna do a hell of a job.”
After sitting and learning behind Nix as a freshman, two touted quarterback transfers arrived in fifth-year starter Gabriel and 2023 top prospect Moore.
The experienced Gabriel was anointed the starting quarterback for 2024 while Moore and Novosad split time as backups throughout the season in mop-up duty.
Through two seasons, Novosad has played in six games and completed 11 of 13 passes for 59 yards.
“Austin is just a student of the game,” Pena said. “Another quarterback coming in with a whole bunch of experience playing in a bunch of different offenses, and he took that opportunity to get tight with Dillon and learn as much and soak in as much as he could from him. That’s just who Austin is.”
‘If you’re a championship person, then you’ve got the chance to be a championship football player’
Novosad has done all the right things to put himself in a position to compete to be Oregon’s starting quarterback in 2025.
While nothing is assured, his coaches say he’s set himself up for success, no matter when it comes.
In high school, Zimmerman recalled Novosad taking time to help out at middle school track and field meets that his sister competed in.
When he comes home to Texas to visit family and friends, he still takes time to work out and throw to improve his game.
Stein said Novosad competed in the Manning Passing Academy in late June with some of the top quarterbacks in the country and never misses a chance to improve or learn something new.
“If you’re a championship person, then you’ve got the chance to be a championship football player,” Zimmerman said. “That’s him. He’s done a good job, and his parents, as well, he’s got a great family, very supportive family.”
That makes him a perfect fit at Oregon, according to Stein and his teammates, who say “the sky’s the limit” for Novosad.
Whether Novosad gets to start this season at Oregon, next year or elsewhere, his coaches are in agreement his time will come and he has set himself up to shine thanks to his preparation and love for competition and the game.
“Whenever his opportunity comes, I think he’s gonna be ready,” Zimmerman said. “I think he’s gonna prepare himself. I think he’s got a great support system around him as well. I’m excited to see, when he gets his opportunity, no matter what it is. Like he’s that kind of person that you genuinely root for.”
Alec Dietz covers University of Oregon football, volleyball, women’s basketball and baseball for The Register-Guard. You may reach him at adietz@registerguard.com and you can follow him on X @AlecDietz.
The debate over whether or not the SEC should move to nine conference games has been raging on for a while now, but that debate has finally been put to bed.
Last month, SEC presidents moved to adopt a nine-game conference schedule starting in 2026. As part of the schedule, each team will have three annual opponents with the other six games rotating. This will allow every team to play each other at least once every other year.
The SEC previously announced that the Texas Longhorns’ annual opponents would be Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas A&M, at least until the league reevaluates annual opponents ahead of the 2030 season. Now, they know exactly who they’ll be facing in conference play for the next four years.
Here’s a look at the Aggies’ full list of conference opponents from 2026-29, as revealed by the league on Tuesday night.
Home
Away
Home
Away
Home
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Home
Away
As part of the nine-game schedule, the Longhorns will finally get to play the other half of the SEC. The conference previously had each of its 14 existing members play either Texas or Oklahoma, but not both, when those two teams joined in 2024, and then just repeated the same matchups in 2025.
This will allow the Longhorns to play some teams they haven’t faced in decades, most notably South Carolina (last played in 1957), Tennessee (1968) and Auburn (1991). With them now playing every other team in the conference at least twice in a four-year span, they have a chance to forge some new rivalries as well.
Additionally, the new schedule will fix a major problem the Longhorns face this season. As they are the designated home team for this year’s Red River Rivalry against Oklahoma in Dallas, they don’t play a true home game between last Saturday against Sam Houston and Nov. 1 against Vanderbilt. They play three road games against SEC opponents and have a bye in that time, thus explaining the month-long drought.
Now, though, the SEC can simply give the designated home team five home games against conference opponents, including the game in Dallas, and the designated road team four home game, thus solving the inequality problem.
It’s a new era in the SEC, and even with the nine-game schedule, the Longhorns are well equipped to compete in their new home.
Austin, TX
Researchers make concerning discovery at bottom of popular lake: ‘Shows how pervasive our impact is’
Austin, Texas, has a growing microplastic problem in its soil and bodies of water.
Danielle Zaleski, a student at the University of Texas’ Jackson School of Geosciences, pulled a core sample from the floor of Lady Bird Lake in Austin. The mesh, intended to separate sediment from plastic, clogged almost instantly. The sample contained so many fragments that the count had to be abandoned.
What’s happening?
A recent report from KXAN dissected research into how microplastic pollution has built up in Austin’s lakes over time, finding that older sediment contained only a few hundred particles per sample while recent layers had thousands.
Zaleski, who works with the University of Texas and the city, has been documenting the rise of microplastics in Austin’s lakes. In older sediment, buried deeper underground, she measured about 200 particles for every 100 grams. Near the surface, the number spiked to 4,600.
The sharpest concentrations were found downtown, beneath Interstate 35, where tire dust and synthetic road debris flow directly into the water. “It’s just another one of those things that shows how pervasive our impact is,” said Brent Bellinger of the city’s Watershed Protection Department, per KXAN.
Why is microplastic pollution concerning?
Microplastics are created when larger plastics break down or during manufacturing. These particles are now found everywhere, including the air, water, soil, and even human bodies. Studies estimate that the average person ingests between 39,000 and 52,000 particles of microplastics and nanoplastics every year.
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The health risks are still being studied, but scientists have linked microplastics to respiratory problems, digestive issues, and possible chemical exposure. For cities like Austin, the concern goes beyond ecology: These lakes provide recreation, influence property values, and connect to broader water supplies. If the buildup worsens, it could threaten both public health and the city’s economy.
The problem isn’t unique to Texas. Research has documented microplastic pollution in rivers, oceans, bottled water, and even in rainfall. These findings suggest the issue is systemic, driven by the massive global use of plastics and inadequate disposal systems.
What’s being done about microplastics?
According to KXAN, Austin’s Watershed Protection Department is incorporating Zaleski’s findings into an upcoming city report, which could inform new policies on stormwater management, waste reduction, and infrastructure design. Researchers also hope the data will push for tighter controls on road runoff, one of the largest contributors.
On an individual level, reducing the use of single-use plastics remains one of the most effective ways to cut back on microplastic pollution. Simple swaps that use less plastic — such as reusable water bottles, cloth bags, or alternatives to plastic packaging — can help limit the plastic stream before it breaks down into microscopic fragments.
Communities around the country are also experimenting with bans on plastic bags and foam containers, along with efforts to clean and restore waterways.
Tackling microplastics won’t be easy, but cities like Austin now have clearer evidence of how urgent the problem has become.
Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don’t miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Can UTEP (1-1), which has never beaten Texas in six previous games, spring a monumental upset?
Follow along for scores and live updates.
Texas football coach Steve Sarkisian said running back Quintrevion Wisner and defensive tackle Alex January were doubtful entering the game, and neither player is listed on the Longhorns’ pregame depth chart. Receiver DeAndre Moore Jr., whom Sarkisian also described as doubtful, is listed atop the depth chart but is not suited up during team warmups.
When: 3:15 p.m. Saturday
Where: Royal-Memorial Stadium in Austin
TV/radio: SEC Network, 1300, 98.1, 105.3 (Spanish)
Line: Texas is favored by 41½ points; over/under is 50½ points.
Sunny skies and hot with highs in the high 90s.
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