Wednesday War Room: A look at defensive recruiting needs

 

For the last few weeks in the War Room, we have taken a deeper look at the depth chart for the upcoming season. With the start of fall camp less than a month away and the dead period upon us, this feels like a good time to take a look at the numbers for the 2026 class. I could probably do all positions in one week, but I think that some of them would run really long making this too unreadable, so this week we continuewith what I consider the ‘easy’ look at one side of the ball.

I will finish up by looking at the defense position-by-position. We will look at the target number, the current number of commits and then a run down of remaining targets. 

 

DEFENSIVE BACK
Need: 4
Commitments (3) Jett Washington,  Devin Jackson, Xavier Lherisse

Davon Benjamin is the primary remaining target at defensive back. I know a lot of sites list Lherisse as a safety, but I think that the staff sees him a little more versatile wit 'nickel' as an option but the primary remaining target is a pure cornerback with Benjamin being listed as the No. 1 cornerback in the nation by On3 as well as the No. 209 overall player in the nation.

As Duck fans have watched other corners - like Brandon Arrington - go off the board throughout this cycle, Benjamin has been the primary target for the staff and this one feels like it gets done sooner rather than later. Benjamin  has not set an official commitment date yet, and could be the final piece referenced by Hayes Fawcett recently. Michigan is pushing hard still, but the the feeling there is also that Oregon is the team to beat.

Beyond Benjamin, the only other targets are those that the Ducks might take another look at from those committed elsewhere and take another swing including Arrington, Notre Dame commit Khary Adams, and USC commits Elbert Hill and Brandon Lockhart.

Lockhart made multiple visits last fall while committed to USC, and the Ducks were very close with Arrington. It would take a couple of different things to happen for Oregon to get back into a race for either of those - the first being losing out on Benjamin, the next being the respective teams of  existing commits not just losing some games, but showing a trajectory that makes reconsideration a necessity, and the Ducks probably changing some of their NIL packages for those folks.

I don't expect that to be the case, however, as there is a strong feeling on Benjamin. 

 

LINEBACKER
Need: 2
Commitments (1) Tristan Phillips

Oregon has had Tristan Phillips locked in since December and have watched as a lot of really good linebackers have come off the board. But there have been two primary targets during that time. 

Nick Abrams and Tyler Atkinson are the two primary targets still left on the board. It goes without saying that Oregon would take both of both wanted to commit, but that does not feel very likely at this point. Oregon has been very aggressive int he package they have put together for Atkinson and see him much the same way they saw Immanuel Iheanacho on the offensive line: a centerpiece for the defense.

Right now, there is not a ton of confidence with folks on the Oregon side that they will land either of these prospects. Abrams is set to commit next week and feels like 'the most likely' from this duo, but even that seems to be up in the air given the hard push from others.

Originally it did not feel like Georgia was going to take the (NIL) steps needed to push for Atkinson, but that has changed and there is a pretty strong feeling that the Bulldogs are the team to beat. With Abrams, the feeling is that Michigan and Alabama have made a lot of strides and he could be off the board staying closer to home than others, but the Ducks do have a strong duo of ambassadors still working on getting Abrams to Oregon with Iheanacho and a couple of other current Ducks from the area. Feels like Abrams is their best shot right now, but that is up in the air for the moment.

If they miss on both, there are not a lot of options out there who are 'no brainer' targets not already committed. The west coast is bereft of talent at the position in 2026 and the best remaining west coast prospect is USC commit Talanoa Ili. Could the Ducks make another push there? Sure. I am not sure how much progress they would make, but it is an option for the staff should that become a necessity.

 

EDGE
Need: 1-2
Commitments (0) 

This might be the most fascinating list for Oregon given they already had an edge committed - for a very short time - with Richard Wesley making his short term pledge last month. I mentioned it in another article, but I don't think that the staff has the same perception as the outside world of the situation. They are not as 'turned off' by some of the stuff that has been said and done as those outside the program. We don't have the relationship with this that they do so some of the stuff we see from the outside does not match their feelings. In other words, I don't think that they have completely taken Wesley off the board as someone that they want to consider pursuing.

The primary target for the moment, though, is Anthony 'Tank' Jones the elite edge from Mobil (AL) St. Paul's Episcopal High School. There is a higher confidence among the staff with Jones than the feelings I got from reaching out a couple of weeks ago which is encouraging.

If the Ducks miss there, much like the linebacker spot, there is not a lot of elite talent on the west coast for edge. I do think that communication remains open with Wesley and is an avenue. Should the Ducks need to continue looking, I would not be surprised if there were still a 'quiet' push for Derek Colman-Brusa from Seattle. The Huskies made him their 'number one' target at edge, but the Ducks have done a good job the last couple of cycles circling back to Washington commits and making a strong push. I was a little surprised at the commitment from Colman-Brusa when it happened (timing, not his ultimate choice), so I do think there is a lot of time left here for Oregon to get back into the picture.

There are a lot of solid options out there, but I don't see Oregon taking someone just to take someone at the position. There is a solid group of young talent already in the locker room and the staff will look at the next steps if it becomes necessary. 

 

DEFENSIVE LINE
Need: 2-3
Commitments (1) Tony Cumberland

This is going to sound quite crazy in this modern recruiting era - but Cumberland who is originally from Scottsdale (AZ) but currently attends Willamette High School in Eugene - has been committed for almost two years making his pledge in September of 2023.

Given that the Ducks had two other defensive tackles committed, it is very clear that the staff want to get at least one more if not two more back on the board. While I had not planned on sharing the specifics of what happened with Moala other than to say that family reasons drove his decision, the reality is that I am not sure if he sticks with North Carolina at this point either. The promise supposedly made is going to be difficult to actually accomplish and that could leave a bad taste down the road. The Ducks also had Tomuhini Topui on the commit list at one time before he flipped to USC.

The primary target left on the board is also someone for whom I think the Ducks are in excellent position - Deuce Geralds. He has not yet set a commitment date, but when I spoke with him at the Polynesian Bowl earlier this year, one of the things that really stands out is relationships - especially his relationship with Oregon head coach Dan Lanning. “They had reached out to me, and Coach Lanning, when he was at Georgia, I had built a relationship with him in 8th grade before he took off to Oregon," Geralds told me then.

While Ohio State seemed to make a push early, right now it looks like the top competition here is Michigan and I like where Oregon stands at the moment.

Another name to keep in mind is 2027 prospect Jalen Brewster. Oregon is an early contender, but there are also some rumblings that Brewster might reclassify to 2026 which could benefit Oregon. The Ducks are not a surefire bet to land him should he recommit, but they have been very strong early, so that is something on which to keep an eye. Brewster visited in late May and loved the program and staff.

Should Oregon miss on any of their remaining targets, I will put up a 'Sting Factor' article with some of the other names to watch. Almost anyone at any of the positions above are going to be 'flip' candidates, but the thing about this cycle is the number of early commits and the likelihood that all of those early commits stay committed. There are a lot of players that I think we will see some movement from during the season, sot he period between August and December could be extra crazy and busy.