If you followed recruiting leading up to national signing day in 2016, you knew the names of five-star QB recruits Shea Patterson and Jacob Eason.



An under-the-radar QB in Eugene certainly did.



"I remember reading all the recruiting stuff," Justin Herbert said. "I've heard about those guys for a long time."



Patterson and Eason were the highest-rated QBs in the 2016 class before landing at Ole Miss and Georgia, respectively. In the same 247Sports composite ranking, Herbert was 39th. He arrived at Oregon at this time last year a local favorite, but relatively unknown on the national scene.



That's all changed now.



Following a breakout season in which he became the first true freshman QB to start at UO since 1983, Herbert last month took a place among peers he once only knew through recruiting stories by working as a counselor at the prestigious Manning Passing Academy in Louisiana. Among his fellow counselors were Eason, Patterson, USC's Sam Darnold and Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson of Louisville.



"They probably have no idea who I am, but I knew about every single guy there," Herbert said in a phone interview Wednesday. "It was definitely a shock to be around Lamar Jackson and (Oklahoma State's) Mason Rudolph because those are some pretty big-name guys."



Though UO football administrator Jeff Hawkins is an operations director at the Manning camp, and a few UO quarterbacks have worked as counselors there in the past, Herbert's invitation wasn't the result of working a connection. As a bright spot amid an otherwise forgettable 4-8 record in 2016, he'd earned his place.

Herbert ranked second among freshman nationally in both quarterback rating (148.7) and completion percentage (63.5), behind only Darnold. Herbert threw for 19 touchdowns against four interceptions in nine games after winning the starting job in early October. In just his third start, set UO's single-game record for total offensive yards with 512 against Arizona State.



"Herbert is legit," said one NFL scout who could not speak publicly about prospects.





Herbert was joined at the Manning camp by fellow Sheldon High School grad and Duck Taylor Alie. Alie took reps with both the receivers and quarterbacks during spring practices, but following the transfers of Terry Wilson and Travis Jonsen, the only QBs left on the roster are Herbert, true freshman backup Braxton Burmeister and Alie. Coach Willie Taggart told The Register-Guard in June that recruit Bruce Judson could also be used as insurance at the position, if necessary.



"I really, really liked Travis," Herbert said. "I liked having him around and thought he was a really good quarterback and I think it's always tough with quarterbacks. Only one guy can play and I thought we were really close in competition."



As more responsibility rests on the 6-foot-5, 225-pound Herbert's shoulders, he feels better equipped to handle it. He's already been through quite a wringer in just 12 months. His tests last fall included a quick promotion to starter, facing Pac-12 defenses and the firing of Mark Helfrich, the coach who recruited him.

Justin Herbert (10) threw three touchdowns on 16-of-26 passing in the spring game.

Taggart was often quick to praise Herbert in the spring but didn't commit to naming a starter despite his apparent lead -- though it should be noted Taggart stressed every position battle remained open after spring, as a way of ensuring competition throughout the offseason. As a former star QB himself at Western Kentucky, Taggart has a naturally close watch on the evaluation of quarterbacks, and regularly repeated that every QB needed more consistency as a passer and leader.

That last criticism shaped how Herbert approached summer's throwing and weights workouts, which unlike last year have been well-attended and no longer languid, he said.



"In the weight room, I try to go check on the offensive linemen or the receivers and see how they're doing," Herbert said. "We're all getting way more comfortable with each other. It makes it so much easier to address them in workouts and say, 'This is what we need to do.'"



When Marcus Mariota attended the Manning camp, he said he was blown away by how much he learned listening to the Manning brothers -- Peyton, Eli and Cooper -- speak to the college counselors.



"I just sat down and took notes," Mariota said this week. "(Peyton) talked about how he handled himself off of the field, to watching film week in and week out. Just little habits like that that you hear from them and can learn from is so valuable. I think Herb, hopefully, was able to take some notes."





Herbert said it was "amazing to see how much I learned" over the course of a few days in Louisiana. This was on top of an offseason in which he says his football-only focus -- he'd starred in basketball and baseball at Sheldon, too -- allowed him to take strides in his understanding of the position's nuances. The direction a defensive back's hips are turned. The positioning of his feet on drop-backs.



His takeaways from the Manning camp were more of the big-picture variety.



The Mannings harped on similar themes as Taggart.



"They really talked about how a quarterback has to lead by example," Herbert said. "I think I have to kind of step up and have a little more confidence this year. Being a quarterback, you have to be vocal and you have to be around guys and that's something that I wasn't really doing a great job of last year because I was new and I wasn't really confident around the guys.

"Now I've had a year with them and am more comfortable. I can talk with them about what I need from them and what they need from me."

Herbert's increased comfort in the spotlight will be evident later this month, when he, Taggart and linebacker Troy Dye represent UO at Pac-12 media days in Los Angeles.



But a louder voice will do nothing if Herbert isn't upright and healthy this fall.



An experienced offensive line will help. But given UO's tenuous depth at his position, has he considered dialing back how often he breaks the pocket and looks for yards on the ground?



"I'm sure that's something that's probably crossed coach Taggart's mind but we really haven't talked about it too much," he said. "He's going to be aggressive and he's going to call the plays to win."



-- Andrew Greif

agreif@oregonian.com

@andrewgreif