Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.

After being tricked one too many times by offensive players leaving the Oregon Ducks, it’s with extreme caution I watch Marcus Mariota as he dominates the college football stage. Since Mike Bellotti took over the program, in 1995, the Ducks have become an offensive juggernaut, amassing points like Henry Ford making Model T’s way back in the 1900s. After Bellotti had left Eugene, the tradition continued with Chip Kelly and currently with Mark Helfrich. The Ducks can score and look tremendously ridiculous doing it.

Many of the experts considered Mariota as the top prospect available in the 2015 NFL Draft. Mariota is doing everything possible to vault himself at the top of the list of elite. After watching him against Michigan State, he looked like a guy that has all the tools to be a legit NFL quarterback. But, Oregon is a tricky school to evaluate. Their players and their offense make it hard to judge just how good these players can be in the NFL, especially quarterbacks since two first-round quarterbacks (Akili Smith and Joey Harrington) were huge busts. Both were drafted with the third pick overall in the first round upon entry into the NFL.

Mariota is a generation away from Smith and Harrington, but Oregon still leaves hesitation in my analysis. Mariota is a solid prospect. Clearly he can beat you with his legs and arm. His character and ability to lead make him a guy to cheer for on Saturdays. Mariota shows plenty of upside and likely will be in the mix as one of the top quarterbacks in 2015 NFL Draft. The last five quarterbacks drafted from the Ducks include:

Year                                   Player                    Round           Overall
2008                           Dennis Dixon                 5                     156
2006                           Kellen Clemens             2                       49
2002                           Joey Harrington           1                         3
2001                           A.J. Feeley                      5                     155
1999                            Akili Smith                      1                          3

Not an impressive list of quarterbacks at the pro level, but as good as it gets in college football.

Is Mariota going to be able to buck the trend?

Since Bellotti left through today, name one offensive weapon drafted that’s proven to be NFL worthy from Oregon. A.J. Feeley, Jonathan Stewart, Onterrio Smith, Dennis Dixon or Kellen Clemens? Think about Clemens, drafted by the New York Jets, in the second round in 2006. He was drafted to become a franchise quarterback, but that didn’t happen.

Call me crazy, but buyer beware on skill position guys leaving Oregon.