Wednesday War Room: A look at remaining offensive 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 nearly 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 start with what I consider the ‘easy’ look at one side of the ball.

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

QUARTERBACK:
Need: 1-2
Commitments (1) Bryson Beaver

Notes: The Ducks were going to take two here if one of those was Ryder Lyons. The feeling was that the mission created a separation which would help under multiple scenarios. If both are big time, then the separation – at the very least – gets multiple years of elite guys. It creates a sort of protection by having that guy.

With Lyons committed to BYU, the Ducks still have their 2026 guy and will continue to recruit Lyons while also turning their attention to the 2027 quarterbacks.

 

RUNNING BACKS:
Need: 1
Commitments (1) Tradarian Ball

Notes: Oregon was all in on Ball early and it has paid off with Ball being one of those that not only commits early but completely shuts down his recruitment and becomes a peer recruiter. Oregon has a lot of young depth on the roster currently with guys like Da’Jaun Riggs (R Fr) Dierre Hill (True Fr), and Jordon Davison (True Fr) on the roster along with some other experienced guys.

If the Ducks get a departure from someone like Jayden Limar, I don’t think that gets them into the market for a second 2026 running back, I think they would simply look to the future, so Ball looks to be the only RB for the Ducks this cycle.

 

TIGHT END:
Need: 1
Commitments (1) Kendre Harrison

Notes: The services may have dropped him toa  four star, but Harrison might still be the best tight end in the 2026 class and this is another one who committed, shut down his recruitment and became a great peer recruiter. I know there was a little bit of recruiting with Brock Harris, but given that he told me he was taking a two year mission, a lot of that recruitment was about continuing a relationship for the future. I still don’t think Harris comes to Oregon even after his LDS mission, but the staff will continue to work on him for the future.

I know the depth chart seems thin, but the Ducks have a solid room and this is their one for this class.

 

WIDE RECEIVER:
Need: 2-3
Commitments (1) Messiah Hampton

Notes: This is finally a position on offense where Oregon is not yet full. So who are some of the targets?

Jalen Lott: As I mentioned the other day, Oregon right now is feeling some confidence here. Lott has a sister at USC, but the Trojans also have a logjam at wide receiver in this class and are the current favorites to land Ethan ‘Boobie’ Feaster. If they do, then they will not have room for Lott. But the Ducks might even be the team to beat if Feaster goes elsewhere given the effort the Ducks have put in here and that he has always been a top 2 target.

Calvin Russell: I am putting him here because he is a target. Do I think he picks Oregon? No. Right now Michigan or Florida State seem like the top two and I would be surprised if it was not Michigan.

I know that the Ducks would love to add one of Chris Henry, Jr. or Kayden Dixon-Wyatt (or both) to add some elite depth to the class, but that is just not overly realistic right now. Both have shut down their recruitment and are seemingly fully committed to Ohio State. Will the staff continue to recruit? Of course, but I would not get too much pinned on flipping either of them.

One thing to consider here is that Gatlin Bair will be coming back for the 2026 season, so he is a player that is, essentially, a 2026 prospect. That means that if the Ducks land Lott and are able to keep Bair committed to Oregon following his return from his LDS mission, they should be set at wide receiver.

 

OFFENSIVE LINE:
Need: 2-3
Commitments (1) Koloi Keli

Notes: Oregon has been shooting for the stars at the position going all in on Jackson Cantwell and Immanuel Iheanacho at the tackle spots, but so far, the Ducks have just the one commitment from Interior Offensive lineman Koloi Keli. While I expect that to change soon (today), there are still some holes to plug and one of the top targets recently came off the board.

Immanuel Iheanacho is the top tackle on the board for the Ducks and they are all in on getting the big man from Maryland to commit. While I do not expect it this week, it would not be surprising if he moved up his commitment date to July. This is one that heavily favors Oregon right now.

Tommy Tofi made a visit the same weekend as Koloi and has the kind of versatility that is going to get him an opportunity on the outside as well as on the inside at guard. Tofi decommitted from Cal on Monday and the Ducks are the team to beat.

Kelvin Obot committed to Utah yesterday. The Utes made him their number one priority from both an effort and ‘value’ standpoint. The Ducks will continue to chat with him, but unless someone reneges on a promise, I don’t know that Oregon is willing to do what it takes here. It would be more than double what Josh Conerly was getting last season and that is not going to work for the staff.

Kodi Greene: The one time Oregon commit is now committed to Washington. I know Oregon still checks in on him, but I don’t see this being a re-flip.

Dominic Harris: Another Washington commit that Oregon might take another look at. I don’t know what interest level Harris would have at this point, but he might be someone that gets another look.

FINAL NOTE: At the end of the day, the Ducks want to add a fourth OL to this class for sure, but they are not going to add someone just for the sake of a number. There are currently 16 scholarship offensive linemen on the Oregon roster and 9 of those are either freshmen or sophomores. While the Ducks want to build from within from the ranks of high school players, the staff would rather fill a gap than get too many ‘project’ players on the offensive line.

Next week we will look at the defense. All for now!