Bryan Bennett was expected to lead the high-octane Oregon offense after the Darron Thomas left.
However, Bennett lost the starting job to Marcus Mariota in a tight battle that wasn’t determined until late in the preseason.
Seeing his likelihood of spending countless weeks on the sidelines waiting for garbage time to play, Bennett opted to transfer. He landed at Southeastern Louisiana and has helped guide the Lions to a 2-2 start in 2014.
Bennett leads the team in both passing and rushing, having thrown for 948 yards and ran for another 171. That includes a 404-yard performance against Jacksonville to open the season.
He also has six passing touchdowns and four more on the ground, having scored in all four games. Bennett sits 13th in all of FCS in passing yards and 14th overall in total offense on the season.
The season has been a continuation of the success Bennett found last year with the Lions, as he was named Southland Conference Player of the Year and helped lead the team to the playoffs for the first time in school history. He earned first team All-America honors and finished eighth in voting for the Walter Payton Award, which goes to the top FCS player in the country.
Just like this year, Bennett led Southeastern Louisiana in passing and rushing, racking up 3,165 yards in the air and another 1,046 on the ground. He tossed 21 touchdowns and set a single-season school record with 16 scores.
There were moments of success at Oregon for Bennett, as he played in 18 games over two seasons. He was part of both Rose and Fiesta Bowl victories, including making a start against Colorado.
Out of high school Bennett was a three-year starter for Encino Crespi and a four-star recruit He replaced former UCLA starter Kevin Prince and helped lead the team to a state runner-up finish as a sophomore, never relinquishing that tag until graduation.
The Lions are currently ranked 11th by HeroSports and travel to Incarnate Word this weekend. They host Northwestern State next Saturday, with a meeting against No. 9 McNeese State looming in November.
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