Tyler Shough Visiting Oregon Ducks Game vs. Minnesota Ends Debate

In the era of the NCAA Transfer Portal, loyalty to programs is constantly debated. If a player transfers, are they solely attributed to the college they ended their career at? When it comes to the No. 9 Oregon Ducks, transfer quarterbacks continues to prolong this debate.

This question college football fans commonly toss around was somewhat answered when the Ducks squared off against the Minnesota Golden Gophers for a rare Friday night game.

In attendance for Oregon's 42-13 victory was New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough, who is currently on a bye week with the Big Easy.

Nov 9, 2025; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) throws a pass during the third quarter against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

Shough's History with Oregon

Shough played for three programs during his time in college: Oregon, Texas Tech, and Louisville. The Chandler, Arizona native spent three seasons with the Ducks from 2018 - 2020 and transferred in February of 2021, shortly after Oregon's 2020 shortened season.

He played three games during his freshman year, was the backup for Los Angeles Chargers starting quarterback Justin Herbert in 2019 seeing action in eight games, and in 2020, won the starting job and ended up winning the Pac-12 Championship against the USC Trojans 31-24.

Losses to Oregon State and Cal in the 2020 season combined with quarterback Anthony Brown's 98 yard touchdown drive during the 2020 Fiesta Bowl contributed to Shough's transferring directly after the season to the Red Raiders.

Shough spent three seasons at Texas Tech, and one season at Louisville before entering the 2024 draft.

Nov 2, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) throws a pass against the Los Angeles Rams during the second half at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Tyler Shough returned to Eugene last night

Officially claiming Shough 🦆 pic.twitter.com/joDaPkcIdy
— Barstool Ducks (@BarstoolDucks) November 15, 2025

Meeting Old Friends at Oregon

With Shough returning to Oregon, the New Orleans starter met up with his former roommate and teammate, Verone McKinley III, who spent two years in the league as a safety (Miami Dolphins and Arizona Cardinals) before joining the Ducks once more as the director of personnel strategy this season.

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McKinley posted two photos of himself and Shough on his Instagram story the night of the Minnesota game. One featured the two athletes when they first joined the Ducks in their dorm room, and the other was the two smiling on the sidelines of the Friday night game. Shough reposted both photos onto his own story page.

It's also important to note that Shough's wife, Jordan Shough, is also a former Oregon Duck who played on the Oregon soccer team.

Oct 26, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Saints quarterback Tyler Shough (6) throws downfield during the fourth quarter against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

Shough with the Saints

Stepping in for starter Spencer Rattler, Shough has been a middling presence for the Saints with glimmers of promise over four game appearances. He currently has 586 yards on the season with three touchdowns and two interceptions.

His best game so far was against the Carolina Panthers, where the Saints won 17-7 on the road. Shough threw 19-27 for 282 yards and two touchdowns, including a 30 yard connection to tight end Juwan Johnson, also a former Duck.

Shough and the Saints return to the field next week, hosting a home game on Sunday, Nov. 23 at 1:25 p.m..