Roper: From Duck to Grizzly

As far as life in the wild goes, I think I’d rather be a Grizzly than a Duck. Seems that some people think similarly about the situation in college football. After being released from the Oregon ducks in May, quarterback Justin Roper has announced that he’ll be a Montana Grizzly next season.

Image: Newscom

It isn’t that Roper isn’t good, according to the Ducks coaching staff. They just have someone better – Jeremiah Masoli. Montana gives him the chance to explore his NFL potential, according to what he told reporters earlier today.

Roper started during three games last year before a knee injury forced him to spend the next four games on the bend . During those three games, plus three others near the end of the season where he played (but didn’t start), Roper completed 48 out of 91 passes. He threw three touchdown passes and ran the ball in himself once.

Montana can have Roper for two years, since he redshirted in 2006. Will he succeed with this program? Maybe. If he does, I hope people will actually take notice. They may not be Florida or USC, but great quarterbacks have come from weirder places.