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Oregon quarterback Jeff Lockie in action during the 2013 spring game at Autzen Stadium.

(Ross William Hamilton/The Oregonian)

EUGENE -- A month of practices and a spring game did little to highlight any separation in Oregon's backup quarterback race, with head coach Mark Helfrich summing up the four-man competition as simply, "Meh."

In the two months since that non-vote of confidence, though, the herd has thinned. Jake Rodrigues and Damion Hobbs have transferred, leaving Jeff Lockie and Taylor Alie as the only returners with incoming freshman Morgan Mahalak set to join the group.

And as the summer begins to wind toward August, right now, it looks like the job might be Lockie's to lose -- though he doesn't expect the competition to be Marcus Mariota's No. 2 to end any time soon.

"No matter who is here it doesn't change anything," Lockie said on Tuesday outside the Hatfield-Dowlin Complex. He had just finished a weight training session and was heading to study for an Economics 350 test. "You have to compete for it every year, that stays the same for Taylor and Morgan."

Mahalak may be dripping with potential, and Alie was said to have had a strong spring, but as camp approaches, Lockie is the only quarterback other than Mariota with playing time on his resume.

Playing slightly ahead of Rodrigues on the depth chart, Lockie made nine appearances in 2013, completing 8 of 13 passes for 57 yards and an interception. It's not much to look at on paper, but the experience of the redshirt sophomore is something his teammates have taken note of.

"Lockie is a great leader for our team. That's what you need as a quarterback," senior receiver Keanon Lowe said. "He shows up everyday and works. He helps organize all our seven-on-sevens, one-on-ones. He's been working his butt off through the spring and summer and I'm confident and our offense is confident in him being our number two guy."

The transfer of Rodrigues highlighted Lockie's solidifying position in the depth chart. The two battled for the position last year and were expected to reprise that competition this fall. But Rodrigues chose to leave the Ducks in May -- a move that Lockie said wasn't completely surprising.

"It happens. As you're starting to notice, all around quarterbacks are like a musical chairs act," he said. "Everyone knows stuff like that is going to happen eventually. It just so happened that (Rodrigues and Hobbs) went at the same time."

Lockie will likely enter camp as the favorite for the backup role, but he's expected to be pushed by the freshman Mahalak. A four-star recruit out of Marin Catholic (Calif.), Mahalak was ranked by 247sports as the fifth-best dual-threat quarterback in the country. And in the short time he's been on campus, he's already turned some heads.

"The way he throws reminds me a lot of Marcus," Oregon center Hroniss Grasu said. "It's the way he carries himself. He's very quiet. Very humble."

Of course, Grasu said there's a big difference between initial impressions and what he'll see in the third week of fall camp when it's 100 degrees and bodies are hurting. But for now, he sees potential.

Lockie sees it, too. He's also not ready to step aside and relinquish his spot on the depth chart.

"Everyone here wants to play," Lockie said. "You come to a top 10 program like this and it doesn't always work out like that. You have to be patient and wait your turn and hopefully you'll get a shot."

-- Tyson Alger | @tysonalger