Jesus, girls and Marcus Mariota

EUGENE, Ore. (Christian Examiner) -- A middle school reporter from O'Hara Catholic School in Eugene stole the show during the postgame press conference following the University of Oregon's 44-10 win against Colorado on Saturday.

In the game, junior Marcus Mariota threw three touchdowns, ran for another and amassed 396 total yards, adding to his portfolio as the favorite for this season's Heisman Trophy. Because he has another year of eligibility, his status for next season remains a hot topic football discussions.

Acknowledged by Ducks Head Coach Mark Helfrich the fearless young reporter prefaced his question in context of Mariota's upcoming decision and then asked if Helfrich knew anything about Marcus Mariota, "whether he's staying or leaving?" And to laughter explained, "Well, I mean that's the talk around school. Is he staying or is he leaving?"

Helfrich looked serious and asked the young man, "What is the talk around school?"

"How have you broken it down? What do you think he'll do?" Helfrich genuinely probed.

What came next was pure delight for the crowded room of seasoned sports writers.

"Well, there's three things that go on at O'Hara Catholic, or four" the young man said. "There's Jesus. There's girls. And there's Marcus Mariota ...." trailing off before he named the fourth thing.

Helfrich said the question was the best of the night and responded by saying he had no idea.

But, he added, if Mariota "went to O'Hara, he would be a great student and a great person and somebody everybody could look up to."

O'Hara Catholic School enrolls students from preschool through eighth grade.