Everything You Need to Know About Oregon's New QB, Vernon Adams Jr.

Former Eastern Washington quarterback Vernon Adams, a 2014 FCS All-American, has officially transferred to Oregon.

The move had been rumored for weeks but finally turned to reality when Adams tweeted the following Monday:

Oregon was in the market for a quarterback after Marcus Mariota, the 2014 Heisman Trophy winner, declared early for the NFL draft.

There are four other quarterbacks on the roster—junior Jeff Lockie, redshirt freshman Morgan Mahalak, true freshman Travis Waller and Georgia Tech transfer Ty Griffin—but combined that group has thrown 41 college passes (all by Lockie).

Adams has more than 10,000 college passing yards.

Here's everything you need to know about the Ducks' new QB.

Why Wasn't He an FBS Quarterback to Begin With?

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Why wasn't Adams an FBS quarterback? Mostly because he's short.

There's no other way to explain it. As a senior he led Bishop Alemany High School (Mission Hill, California) to the CIF Pac-5 playoffs, where it lost, 28-21, to eventual state champion Servite.

Adams completed 19 of 34 passes for 278 yards and two touchdowns in the loss. He also had 140 rushing yards on 22 carries. "Tiring" is how future Notre Dame and Arizona Cardinals tight end Troy Niklas, a member of Servite's defensive line, described playing Alemany's 6'0" quarterback, per Martin Henderson of ESPN Los Angeles.

But a 6'0" quarterback is still a 6'0" quarterback. Times are slowly changing, but in 2011, no FBS team was willing to let him play behind center. He received zero stars from Rivals.com and was only offered two scholarships, both from FCS programs.

He committed to Eastern Washington over Portland State and headed to the Big Sky Conference.

FCS Domination

Adams took a redshirt in 2011 and split time with SMU transfer Kyle Padron in 2012. Padron started the semifinal playoff game against Sam Houston State, but after falling behind 35-0 in the first half, EWU head coach Beau Baldwin called on Adams for relief.

This is where the legend began in earnest.

In the second half alone, Adams completed 14 of 26 passes for 364 yards and six touchdowns. Six! His 33-yard touchdown to Brandon Kaufman pulled the Eagles within one score, 45-42, with three minutes, four seconds left to play. Sam Houston State recovered an onside kick and drained the clock with a pair of first downs, winning by that same margin, but the statement Adams made was enormous.

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He carried that momentum into 2013, when he totaled 4,994 passing yards and 55 passing touchdowns as a redshirt sophomore. He finished second in the voting for the Walter Payton Award—the FCS equivalent of the Heisman Trophy—behind Eastern Illinois QB Jimmy Garoppolo.

The highlight of Adams' season came Week 1 against Oregon State. The Beavers were No. 25 in the Associated Press preseason rankings, expected to contend for a Pac-12 North title. They were more than just an FBS opponent; they were a good FBS opponent.

Adams didn't care in the slightest.

Eastern Washington whipped Oregon State's defense in Corvallis, gaining more than 620 yards and scoring 49 points. Adams completed 23 of 30 passes for 411 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions, and rushed for 107 yards and two more touchdowns. His two-yard score with less than 20 seconds to play gave EWU the 49-46 win.

The Eagles lost in the FCS semifinals for the second consecutive season, this time to Towson, 35-31. They came back with even more hype in 2014, but their year followed a similar track.

Adams shredded a respectable Pac-12 defense—this time Washington—for 475 passing yards and seven touchdowns. The Eagles couldn't pull the upset, but they did score 52 points in Seattle, and Adams once again finished No. 2 in the Walter Payton voting. Illinois State bounced Eastern Washington in the FCS quarterfinals, 59-46, in what proved to be Adams' final game with the program.

Onward and upward to Oregon.

Transfer Process

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Oregon wasn't the only team after Adams. Four years after receiving zero FBS scholarship offers, the same 6'0" quarterback from Mission Hill, California, still standing 72 inches tall, was courted by some of the biggest names in the sport.

Specifically, Texas and UCLA made runs at Adams in January, per Andrew Grief of The Oregonian, who spoke with Adams' former high school coach Dean Herrington. "They both want him," Herrington told Grief of the Longhorns and Bruins—but his final decision came down to Oregon and Eastern Washington.

Grief explained the timeline of the transfer process Monday:

"

[Adams] said he first got wind that the dream could become reality in mid-January, soon after the Ducks lost in the first College Football Playoff national championship to Ohio State. Two days after the loss, on Jan. 14, Mariota, Oregon's first Heisman Trophy winner, announced he would forgo his senior season and enter the NFL draft.

Adams asked for and received from Eastern Washington his permission to speak with other programs and visited Oregon's campus the last weekend of January. There, he connected quickly with receivers Dwayne Stanford and Bralon Addison. Addison and Adams now plan on rooming together.

"

Adams has a son, Vernon Kash Adams II, who will stay at Eastern Washington with his mother, an EWU student. Leaving his son was one of the biggest complicating factors for Adams, who also sacrificed the stability of knowing he's the starter.

"This was the hardest decision of my life," Adams told Grief. "I just thought this would be a great opportunity for my family and myself to accomplish things that I've been dreaming about since I was little.

"Heisman, national championship, playing at the Rose Bowl and playing at Oregon. I love it here at Eastern, but this is what I've been dreaming about."

Adams plans to enroll in mid-June and will not have the benefit of spring practice. Lockie, Mahalak and Griffin will battle for the edge before Adams and Waller arrive for fall camp.

Kyle Kensing of Bleacher Report compared Adams with Johnny Manziel—himself a one-time Ducks commit—because he packs so much arm strength into a miniature frame. That, his versatility and his experience make Adams the presumed favorite to start Sept. 5, when Oregon hosts (you guessed it!) Eastern Washington.

Of course it does.

"It's going to be weird" Adams told Grief of playing his former team. "Now they can finally tackle me."

Sounds like Adams thinks he's the favorite to start, too.

Follow Brian Leigh on Twitter: @BLeigh35