2026 Class post-ESD
Posted: Thu Dec 04, 2025 10:00 am
This is my 'how did we do' thread. All personal opinion based on watching too many Hudl videos and pouring over Athletic.net times and MaxPreps stats. In the past and continuing now, I take the perspective of how the class combines with the class before because I think that's going to be the majority of your starters in 3-4 years if everything goes well.
The Great:
The size and athleticism is ridiculous, but it also didn't prevent the staff from finding ballplayers who might not have ideal measurables. What I mean is that the Ducks signed as many freak athletes as anyone in the country - Jett Washington (6'5 safety), Tommy Tofi (6'6, 330), Immanuel Iheanacho (6'6, 340), Kendre Harrison (fluid 6'7 TE) - but they also got guys who I expect to be outstanding college players even if they don't have amazing measurables. I expect Azel Banag and Hudson Lewis to be super productive players. You'd prefer to have elite physical traits combined with elite football skills, but sometimes you get Canton Kaumatule (physically gifted but not talented) and Nikko Reed and Jabbar Muhammad (less physically gifted but very talented). Overall, I like the combination of both in this class.
Our secondary and wide receivers, assuming we sign at least one of Jalen Lott and Chris Henry Jr., are ridiculously talented. Sign me up for Devin Jackson and Trey McNutt for the next few years at safety. Davon Benjamin has lots of upside and Banag will be ready to play as soon as he can physically get strong enough. Harrison is a truly elite tight end, Jalen Lott has all the tools you could want, and Hudson Lewis is the fast, slippery, annoying little slot receiver I've been dying for for years. Gatlin Bair coming off his mission projects as a Devon Allen type with Olympic-level straight line speed.
The Good:
We needed offensive linemen who might be able to play early, and we got two in 'Nacho and Tofi. There's no telling exactly when they'll be ready, but combined with Stascausky and Utu from the last class, I feel reasonably confident we'll have a good offensive line in a couple years.
The Bad:
Quarterback and interior defensive line clearly had swings and misses. I generally like what I see from Tony Cumberland, but this class saw the decommitments of 3 interior defensive linemen and never recovered, leaving it devoid of both talent and depth that will have to be filled via the portal (which is fine, it just carries some risk). At quarterback, I'll just say that I don't think Beaver will ever be a starter for Oregon. Will Akili Smith JR? I have no idea, but we've probably all seen commentary that he's struggled in his first year in the program. Given the relative importance of defensive line and quarterback, you'd like to have hit on those positions better.
The Unknown:
I have no opinion on Koloi Keli due to lack of tape. Similarly, Tradarian Ball seems to mostly play slot receiver at his high school so I have no opinion on what kind of running back he might be. There are lots of articles talking about Tristan Phillips and his production at the small-school level in California, but there's no senior tape for me to have an opinion.
The Great:
The size and athleticism is ridiculous, but it also didn't prevent the staff from finding ballplayers who might not have ideal measurables. What I mean is that the Ducks signed as many freak athletes as anyone in the country - Jett Washington (6'5 safety), Tommy Tofi (6'6, 330), Immanuel Iheanacho (6'6, 340), Kendre Harrison (fluid 6'7 TE) - but they also got guys who I expect to be outstanding college players even if they don't have amazing measurables. I expect Azel Banag and Hudson Lewis to be super productive players. You'd prefer to have elite physical traits combined with elite football skills, but sometimes you get Canton Kaumatule (physically gifted but not talented) and Nikko Reed and Jabbar Muhammad (less physically gifted but very talented). Overall, I like the combination of both in this class.
Our secondary and wide receivers, assuming we sign at least one of Jalen Lott and Chris Henry Jr., are ridiculously talented. Sign me up for Devin Jackson and Trey McNutt for the next few years at safety. Davon Benjamin has lots of upside and Banag will be ready to play as soon as he can physically get strong enough. Harrison is a truly elite tight end, Jalen Lott has all the tools you could want, and Hudson Lewis is the fast, slippery, annoying little slot receiver I've been dying for for years. Gatlin Bair coming off his mission projects as a Devon Allen type with Olympic-level straight line speed.
The Good:
We needed offensive linemen who might be able to play early, and we got two in 'Nacho and Tofi. There's no telling exactly when they'll be ready, but combined with Stascausky and Utu from the last class, I feel reasonably confident we'll have a good offensive line in a couple years.
The Bad:
Quarterback and interior defensive line clearly had swings and misses. I generally like what I see from Tony Cumberland, but this class saw the decommitments of 3 interior defensive linemen and never recovered, leaving it devoid of both talent and depth that will have to be filled via the portal (which is fine, it just carries some risk). At quarterback, I'll just say that I don't think Beaver will ever be a starter for Oregon. Will Akili Smith JR? I have no idea, but we've probably all seen commentary that he's struggled in his first year in the program. Given the relative importance of defensive line and quarterback, you'd like to have hit on those positions better.
The Unknown:
I have no opinion on Koloi Keli due to lack of tape. Similarly, Tradarian Ball seems to mostly play slot receiver at his high school so I have no opinion on what kind of running back he might be. There are lots of articles talking about Tristan Phillips and his production at the small-school level in California, but there's no senior tape for me to have an opinion.