How Oregon’s head coach plans to “double down” in 2025.
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16
Duck Season Football 2025
Duck Season, the Emerald’s sports magazine. is published by Emerald Media Group Inc., the independent nonprofit news company at the University of Oregon. Formerly the Oregon Daily Emerald, the news organization was founded in 1900.
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ON THE COVER
Oregon head coach Dan Lanning celebrates a 45-37 win over No. 3 Penn State in the Big Ten Championship Game. (Jonathan Suni/Emerald)
(RIGHT) The No. 1 Oregon Ducks beat the No. 20 Illinois Fighting Illini
NEWSROOM
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New faces, big impact: Ducks add key transfers ahead of second Big Ten season
PG. 8
New year, same expectations
PG. 5
Who’s under center?
PG. 9
The next generation of tight ends
PG. 10
PG. 7 2025 Oregon linebacker preview
Ranking Oregon’s most difficult 2025 away trips
PG. 15 Oregon’s 2025 NIL landscape
38-9 in their game on Oct. 26, 2024.
(Alexander Hernandez / Emerald)
NEW FACES, BIG IMPACT: DUCKS ADD KEY TRANSFERS AHEAD OF SECOND BIG TEN SEASON
Ducks welcome eight key transfers to bolster 2025 roster.
BY HARRY LEADER Sports Reporter
The Ducks brought in eight experienced transfers ahead of the 2025 season with additions to both sides of the ball. Head coach Dan Lanning is looking to rely on veteran experience to push the Ducks back into the playoff picture this season.
“We do have a brand new team and brand new challenges” Lanning said. “So building that, starting from scratch, getting the opportunity to head back to the kitchen, figure out what we’re going to be able to throw in for our recipe and create a great meal is something we’re super excited about.”
Here’s what to know about eight new likely starters.
Isaiah World
Offensive Tackle – Redshirt Senior University of Nevada, Reno
World is a massive addition to the Ducks offensive line after a solid season at Nevada. He started all 13 games at left tackle and got his second All-Mountain West honorable mention. Fans should expect to see the 6’8” tackle dominate the left side of the line.
Alex Harkey
Offensive Tackle – Redshirt Senior Texas State University
Harkey had an impressive year last season with the Texas State Bobcats, where he started all 12 games at right tackle and was a member of the All-Sun Belt Third Team. Harkey brings size and run blocking to the O-Line room after helping Texas State become the sixteenth best rushing offense in the country.
Emmanuel Pregnon
Guard – Redshirt Senior USC
Pregnon brings size and power to the Ducks offensive line after an impressive tenure with the USC Trojans. He earned a 73.3 pass-blocking grade and allowed only 14 quarterback pressures across two seasons in Los Angeles. His skills at left guard earned him a spot on the all-Big Ten second team in 2024.
Makhi Hughes
Running Back – Redshirt Junior Tulane University
Hughes had a strong season at Tulane last season rushing for 1,401 yards and 15 touchdowns. He also had 19 receptions for 176 yards and two touchdowns. Hughes is a two time first-team All-American Athletic Conference member and is a strong addition to the Ducks backfield.
Malik Benson
Wide Receiver – Senior Florida State University
Benson comes to the Ducks after start ing all 12 games for the Seminoles where he caught 25 receptions for 311 yards and scored one touchdown. Benson brings much needed depth to the receiving room after Evan Stewart’s offseason injury. Wide receiver Jurrion Dickey praised Benson for his experience and leadership at Oregon’s media day.
Bear Alexander
Defensive Lineman – Redshirt Junior USC
Alexander appeared in three games for the Trojans before leaving the team last September due to a lack of playing time. In the 2022 season, he became a national champion as a freshman with the Geor gia Bulldogs and even picked up a sack in the championship game. Alexander has a chance to prove himself as one of the coun
try’s top defensive lineman, following in the footsteps of previous transfers like Derrick Harmon and Jordan Burch.
Dillon
Thieneman
Safety – Junior Purdue
Thieneman had a strong career with the Boilermakers, where he led all defensive backs in the Big Ten in tackles with 104 in 2024 and totaled 210 in 24 starts during his two year tenure in West Lafayette. His athleticism and skill are massive additions to the Ducks defense. In 2024, Thieneman was named second-team All-Big Ten, thirdteam All-American and was the Big Ten Freshman of the Year in 2023.
Theran Johnson
Cornerback – Redshirt Senior
WHO’S UNDER CENTER?
Oregon has yet to name its starting quarterback ahead of the 2025 season. Whoever it chooses will be a new face.
BY OWEN MURRAY Sports Associate Editor
On every quarterback’s helmet is a green sticker that denotes the coach-to-player radio connection. Every season during the Dan Lanning era at Oregon, the green-dot helmet has been worn by a player with seasons of collegiate experience. Bo Nix and Dillon Gabriel entered with seasons under their belts and left Eugene for the NFL Draft as Heisman Trophy finalists and national record holders.
“I always tell people that Bo and Dillon — the way they prepared for each and every game meant there was never a doubt that you were going into a game underprepared,” redshirt sophomore quarterback Austin Novosad said at Oregon’s annual media day.
But Nix and Gabriel are gone. In their place is a stable of promising-yet-untested arms whose ceilings were previously clouded by the veterans who held the starting job instead. This year, the quarterback will have to mature on the field.
Redshirt sophomore Dante Moore projects as the likely starter. Moore, who committed to Oregon as the No. 3 quarterback recruit in the class of 2023 before flipping to UCLA in December 2022, returns for his second season in Eugene with likely the best pure arm talent in the room.
In Los Angeles, Moore made five starts but couldn’t find his feet behind a leaky offensive line. His freshman season ended with a 3-2 record in those games, an 11-9 touchdown-to-interception ratio and 1,609 passing yards.
His next season was more important. Moore transferred to Oregon following Bruins head coach Chip Kelly’s departure to Ohio State — even after Gabriel had already committed to Eugene as the assumed starter. The true sophomore then spent the 2024 season waiting behind Gabriel; he only made appearances in blowout wins over Oregon State, Michigan State and Washington in addition to a snap in the Rose Bowl.
“We spent a lot of time (together) last season, even when we had Dillon,” redshirt junior receiver Justius Lowe said at Oregon’s media day. “Dante was always right there, getting work too. I feel like this year, our chemistry is on another level.”
Lowe also put Moore’s professionalism on par with Nix and Gabriel’s. The doubts, though, lie in whether he has the poise to run an Oregon offense that has thrived with accurate, short-yardage passers.
At UCLA in 2023, Moore’s completion percentage (on 213 attempts) was 53.5%. In his two seasons at Oregon, Nix completed 71.9% and 77.4% of his passes — both led the nation and the latter still stands as the collegiate single-season record — and Gabriel completed 72.9%. Moore, though, has had a year to evolve since his freshman season.
“We’re ready to compete,” Moore said. “A lot of us have chips on our shoulders — I know damn well I’m hungry.”
The challenger to Moore is redshirt sophomore Austin Novosad. The Texas native committed to Oregon as the No. 10 quarterback recruit in the 2023
class, and sat behind Nix and Gabriel for three seasons. He’s got just 13 passing attempts in blowout wins over the last two seasons, but projects as an option intimately familiar with third-year offensive coordinator Will Stein’s fast-moving offense. He’s the most veteran option in terms of years in Eugene.
“I feel lucky,” Novosad said. “In this day and age, a lot of guys have coordinator changes or head coaching changes, and so having the same guy for these three years, we’ve been able to add new things each year and tweak things that we wanted to.”
The rest of the Ducks’ room includes redshirt sophomore Brock Thomas (a Eugene native), redshirt freshmen Luke Moga, Ryder Hayes and true freshman Akili Smith Jr. Oregon’s spring game featured Moga, who had the only passing touchdown of what was a defensive game. None are likely starters, but become the new protégés.
When Oregon takes the field against Montana State University on Aug. 30, the green dot will be on a new helmet. The head it encases will be a new one, yes, but one with everything to prove.
2025 OREGON LINEBACKER PREVIEW
An overhauled Oregon defense will look to its experienced linebacker group for stability in 2025.
BY HENRY LIGHT Sports Reporter
Oregon will have a talented and experienced linebacker group with an important leadership role in 2025. While the names are more familiar than other defensive positions that Oregon filled in the transfer portal, the Ducks’ returning linebackers will be playing new roles.
The overall theme of Oregon’s defense is rebuilding after losing talent to the NFL Draft which very much applies to the linebacker position. Starter Jeffrey Bassa, who finished fifth on Oregon’s defense in total tackles in 2024, was drafted in the fifth round by the Kansas City Chiefs.
Bassa saw the field in all 55 games that Oregon played in his career. Replacing the leadership of the All-Big Ten honorable mention will be one of the keys to Oregon’s defense in 2025.
Bryce Boettcher, who is back for a
take over the play-calling role for Oregon’s defense in 2025. Boettcher went through the 2024 season believing that it would be his last, until the NCAA granted him an extra year of eligibility.
“I talked to my family and thought about it for a couple days, but I’d be lying to you if I didn’t know that night that I wanted to come back,” Boettcher said at Oregon Football Media Day.
In his first year as a starter, Boettcher was one of the best all-around linebackers in the Big Ten, leading Oregon in total tackles with 94, including eight tackles for loss and two sacks. The unexpected offseason gave Boettcher a new opportunity to prepare for football season without also focusing on baseball, which required him to be lighter to play center field. Boettcher gained 10 pounds over the offseason.
“First off, obviously I put on a lot of weight, which I needed to do,” Boettcher said. “My film study has been incredible, just growing my mental game, which when I’m playing baseball, I don’t have a lot of spare time to be watching film.”
Boettcher also had to prepare for an increased leadership role since finding out he would be taking over helmet communications in the spring.
“I always prided myself on being a good communicator before, whether I had the
talking to the guys on the defense and making sure everyone is on the same page, so I’m just going to keep playing my game and the rest will fall into place,” Boettcher said.
Redshirt junior Devon Jackson projects as the likely starter alongside Boettcher at inside linebacker. Jackson broke out last season in a crowded linebacker room behind Bassa and Boettcher. He finished sixth in tackles behind Bassa, including a career high seven in Oregon’s win over Ohio State. The outside linebacker position will be one of the Ducks’ strongest positions in 2025, with Matayo Uiagalelei and Teitum Tuioti returning from excellent sophomore seasons. Both took on starting roles in 2024, and Uiagalelei’s role increased when All-Big Ten third team defensive end Jordan Burch missed four games with injuries. With Burch being drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the third round, there will be a gap to fill in Oregon’s pass rush.
Uiagalelei led the Oregon defense in sacks in 2024 with 10.5. He received conference recognition by the end of the season, making the media’s All-Big Ten first team and the coaches’ second team. His ability to be head coach Dan Lanning and defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi’s best pass rusher over a full season will be one of the most important factors for Oregon’s defense in 2025.
Tuioti earned the starting role in 2024 after playing a rotational role in his freshman season. He finished fourth on Oregon’s defense in tackles with 58 and third in sacks with 5.5. His role was more stable than Uiagalelei’s in 2024, but both will take on more responsibility in 2025.
“There’s a lot of good energy, a lot of young energy and guys that are excited to play football, so it should be fun,” Boettcher said.
(BELOW) Devon Jackson (6) celebrates with Jeffrey Bassa (2) after a big play. The third ranked Oregon Ducks football team took on the second ranked Ohio State Buckeyes on Oct. 12,2024, at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Ore.
BY JOE KRASNOWSKI Sports Reporter
An Oregon media day is just about as close to the mecca of coachspeak and clichés as you can get. It all starts with the head man, of course, and at a Dan Lanning press conference, everything is carefully orchestrated.
After all, it’s easier for everything to go according to script when you have one.
“My plan for the day is to avoid giving you guys any bulletin board equipment,” Lanning said to open his media day address in 2024.
“Montana State is the one I’m most excited about,” Lanning said a year later. “There’s your coachspeak for the day.”
That’s the tightrope act that fans have learned to embrace with Lanning, a coach so smart that he can maneuver his way out of any question, backed by innovation and talent everywhere.
In a way, Lanning’s teams embraced their coach’s moxy and thumped all but a few opponents in 2024 while still being focused on the bigger picture.
That all, of course, came to a halt in the Rose Bowl, which leads fans here — the precipice of a new season for Oregon where optimism is eternal.
Now entering his fourth year as the Ducks’ head coach, it was no surprise when Lanning
NEW YEAR, SAME EXPECTATIONS
How Dan Lanning plans for his team to return to the top.
balked at most individual questions, instead directing questions more toward his team as a whole — a group he believes can win a National Championship.
After all, that’s the Ducks’ goal. Not for the future, but for now.
The clichés, of course, were abundant at this year’s media day.
The preseason is notorious for being the time where players have a lot to are in the best shape of their lives.
Still, Lanning isn’t one to let that get in the way of his messaging.
“(I’m) excited to see what questions we’re able to answer this fall camp,” Lanning said in his 2025 opening address. “I know our guys are ready to work.”
Of course, everyone is feeling optimistic this time of year, with just a few weeks remaining until the Ducks’ first game of the season.
But Lanning isn’t one to sit idly by to start addressing his team’s deficiencies.
“There’s excitement just because it’s a new group,” Lanning said. “There might be some mistakes, but they’re mistakes that are made at full speed. I know that’s going to happen with us. More than anything, I’m just ready to attack it and figure out what we’re really great at, what we got to improve at. That’s the fun part for me — is what problems do we get to solve?”
One of those possible issues could come in the form of the Ducks’ schedule, a 12-game stretch that sees the Ducks on the road for their toughest game — a week four bout with Penn State.
Other than the showdown with the Nittany Lions, there is plenty of quality among the Big Ten, as Wisconsin, Iowa, USC and Washington are all among teams expected to improve from last season.
Oregon’s toughest three-week slate will likely fall Oct. 11-25, where home showdowns with the Badgers and Indiana Hoosiers — a College Football Playoff team from a year ago — are separated by a cross-country road matchup with Rutgers.
“There’s gonna be several teams that we didn’t play this past year,” Lanning said. “We got an unbelievable advanced scouting group, Tyler Dean and his staff. They do a ton for
us as far as just hopping ahead to be able to evaluate what these teams look like.”
Aside from the schedule, the storylines throughout Oregon’s camp have been mostly the same, with a quarterback battle between redshirt sophomores Austin Novosad and Dante Moore a significant factor thus far.
“Like coach Lanning says, ‘Just one day at a time. Get that one percent better,’” Novosad said at media day. “That’s how we view it in the QB room.”
Lanning’s prowess as a leader was on display as he spoke about making the other team uncomfortable while motivating his own.
“Competition anxiety and a lack of confidence, that’s why people fail,” Lanning said. “So our goal within fall camp is, how can we create the same anxiety we have on game day? How can we make practice look as much as possible like a game?”
At Big Ten Media Day a week earlier, Lanning revealed his theme for the year, which, after an undefeated regular season and a Big Ten Championship, was to “double down.”
“Since we’re in Vegas, it seems like the right time to say it. Our theme for this team is double down,” Lanning said to Big Ten Football. “We have done an unbelievable job of building this team over time. You look at our success season to season, and as this team has grown, the process works. We’re close.”
That’ll no doubt be the goal for Lanning and co. this year, but as with everything within the Oregon stratosphere, it will take discipline, consistency and following the script their head coach has for them.
“(Success is) always the same,” Lanning said. “What’s the best version of us? If we’re playing our best football, if we’re being the best that we can possibly be, then that’s something I’m excited about. The results kind of take care of themselves. What’s our goal? I mean, we have high standards. We came here to win championships.”
(Jonathan Suni/Emerald)
(LEFT) Dan Lanning leads his team out onto the field as the Duck fans who made the trip to Indianapolis cheer them on. The number 1 ranked Oregon Ducks took on the number 4 Penn State Nittany Lions on Dec. 7, 2024, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, IN.
THE NEXT GENERATION OF TIGHT ENDS
BY MAX KOEBEL Sports Reporter
In the bulk of any successful football team’s offense is a solid group of tight ends. For Oregon, it is one of many positions to rebuild this offseason after losing two of its lead guys to the NFL. Both Terrance Ferguson and Patrick Herbert spent their entire college careers in Ducks uniforms. Now, the guys who were hidden in the shadows last year will have the opportunity to make a stance.
Herbert played in 41 games at Oregon, where he recorded 31 receptions for 388 yards and four touchdowns. Ferguson played in 53 games and had 134 receptions for 1537 yards and 16 touchdowns, breaking the record in receptions and receiving touchdowns for tight ends at Oregon. He was selected in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams, while Herbert signed as an undrafted free agent with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Stepping into a lead role at the position this season will be junior Kenyon Sadiq, who played in every game last season, but saw limited touches and was less noticed by the fans than the players ahead of him. This year, everyone will see the type of leader he can be.
“Just being a more vocal leader amongst the young people in the tight end room,” Sadiq said regarding his new role. “But also on the team, and just getting out of my com-
How a younger group looks to step into the bright lights.
fort zone and sharing the experience that I do have with other people”
In 2024, Sadiq served as a utility player on the Ducks offense. Sometimes he was receiving, sometimes he was rushing and sometimes he was blocking or returning a kickoff.
“He’s the best tight end in the nation,” quarterback Dante Moore said.
Regardless of the role he was placed in, Sadiq was always learning and growing.
“Having both Terrance and Pat was a great opportunity for me to sit back and see what they’ve done and then learn from them,” Sadiq said. “So now, (I’m) just taking the reins from what they’ve given me and just letting it go.”
Sadiq finished the 2024 season with 24 rushing yards on five carries, 308 receiving yards on 24 receptions, an 18-yard kick return and two touchdowns. Both scores came in the Big Ten Championship Game against Penn State, the first of which was after he hurdled a defender and landed on his feet unfazed on his way to a 28-yard catch-and-run.
“Kenyon’s one of those dynamic players in college football,” Oregon head coach Dan Lanning said. “He’s just grown and gotten better every single year that he’s been here. What I love is the leadership traits that are starting to develop. The way he takes the field, the way he works in practice drills (and) the effort to film — all those pieces are really
adding up, and I think this will be a great season for him.”
Another tight end that will look to step up more this season is sophomore Roger Saleapaga, who appeared in the first 11 games of last season before suffering a season ending injury. He played just 36 snaps on offense, but played 158 on special teams. Saleapaga’s numbers were rather quiet, but he had one big moment that helped secure Oregon’s undefeated regular season.
In Oregon’s Week 7 top-three matchup against No. 2 Ohio State, Saleapaga recovered an onside kick in the first half that gave the Ducks an extra possession. They would win by a single point. More than anything, he said, he is anxious to get back on the field after a long rehab process.
With great football comes great depth. The Ducks have two young tight ends hungry to make a stance and a group of new recruits ready to learn what it means to compete at the college level. Under Lanning, several tight ends have succeeded and gone on to the next level, and we will likely see the same results with Sadiq, Saleapaga and others.
(ABOVE) Kenyon Sadiq avoids the tackle. The University of Oregon Ducks Football team defeated the Portland State University Vikings in a home match at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Ore., on Sept. 2, 2023.
(Eric Becker/Emerald)
RANKING OREGON’S MOST DIFFICULT 2025 AWAY TRIPS
Daily Emerald sports editor Jack Lazarus breaks down his firsthand experience of the Ducks’ road destinations in 2025.
BY JACK LAZARUS
Sports Editor
BEAVER STADIUM, STATE COLLEGE, PA: OREGON AT PENN STATE SEPT. 27 #1
There may not be a better setting in college football than when the Ducks step into their first major challenge of 2025 as they travel out east to face the Penn State Nittany Lions. The Nittany Lions have made Beaver Stadium a fortress under James Franklin and Happy Valley holds the second-largest capacity of any college football stadium in the country (106,572) — only behind the Big House in Ann Arbor, Mich., where the Ducks took home a victory last season. Penn State’s historic marvel in State College has become renowned for the famous “whiteout” game where the stadium is decked out in white for the Nittany Lions’ most important night game of the season. Unfortunately for Oregon, it will be 2025’s version of this phenomenon, as each of the teams will likely be ranked in the top-10 at that point.
HUSKY STADIUM, SEATTLE, WASH: OREGON AT WASHINGTON NOV. 29 #2
While it’s often easy to scoff at anything purple and gold considering the rivalry between the Huskies and Ducks, it’s important to note that Washington’s stadium is actually quite pretty. Husky Stadium can get very loud, which was something that the Ducks contended with in their last visit — remember Camden Lewis’ field goal? Washington is of-
ten, aptly, applauded for the picturesque views and setting around the stadium. The shorter stands on the east side of the stadium allow for incredible views of both the Puget Sound, Mount. Rainier and the rest of the Cascade Range on a clear day. Husky Stadium is always a test for Oregon, but this year, the Huskies look for vengeance after getting blown out in Autzen Stadium last season.
KINNICK STADIUM, IOWA CITY, IOWA: OREGON AT IOWA NOV. 8 # 3
The Ducks have played in Iowa City just twice in their history, but Kinnick Stadium has played host to one of the sports’ most important traditions: the wave. After the first quarter at every home game, the Iowa fans, which is usually a sellout crowd of 69,250 people, turn around and wave to the families at the Stead Family Children’s Hospital overlooking the stadium. Compared to the two spots above, it isn’t quite the architectural marvel, but Kinnick makes up for it with the crowd noise. The Iowans get loud for their Hawkeyes, which can come into play for the Ducks’ second-to-last road trip of the season.
SHI STADIUM, PISCATAWAY, N.J.: OREGON AT RUTGERS OCT. 18 # 4
The Scarlet Knights can claim the title of being the first college football team. In fact, the first ever college football game, a Rutgers 6-4 win over what is now Princeton University, happened on Rutgers’ campus. That being said, the Scarlet Knights have become a Big Ten bottom feeder in their 21 seasons at SHI
Stadium. The stadium holds 52,454 people, which is impressive given it’s one tier on each of the endzones and second tier seating along each of the sidelines. It feels much more disconnected from the game than the other stadiums, which is due to the awkward spacing between the stands and the field. From my experience being on the sidelines at Autzen, the intimacy created by the fans being close adds layers to the atmosphere that teams like Rutgers often struggle to create.
MARTIN STADIUM, EVANSTON ILL: OREGON AT NORTHWESTERN SEPT. 13 # 5
This one had to come last, unfortunately. Northwestern’s historic Ryan Field would have generated more discussion about being higher on the list, but it is currently under major renovations. The Wildcats will play five of their home games this season at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium, which has become an emergency host for the football team, along with the Chicago Cubs’ Wrigley Field. They added bleachers to create more of an atmosphere for the football team before the 2024 season. The only bonus is the beautiful view of Lake Michigan, as it’s positioned right on the shore, but that’s really it.
(ABOVE) Bo Nix (10) celebrates with his center, Jackson Powers-Johnson (58), after clawing back from eleven point deficit and gaining the lead. The University of Oregon Ducks Football team were defeated by the University of Washington Huskies in an away match at Husky Stadium in Seattle, Washington, on Oct. 14, 2023. (Jonathan Suni/Emerald)
OREGON’S 2025 NIL LANDSCAPE
Looking into the numbers and how this iteration of the Ducks is valued by the business world.
BY JACK LAZARUS Sports Editor
It’s a constantly changing world in college football nowadays and Oregon has been at the forefront of innovation in the college sports atmosphere. With that should come a plethora of athletes being paid top dollar by the Ducks, but this season, that’s not the case.
The money that the Ducks are often lauded or criticized for is more spread out amongst the players this year, as one star isn’t taking the forefront for Oregon.
Just over a decade ago, Georgia’s All-American running back Todd Gurley received a four-game suspension for making a deal with memorabilia dealers to sell his autographs. Now, high school athletes are going on national television to announce where they will start their college football journey.
Most recently, Oregon landed a commitment from 247Sports Composite’s No. 18 ranked player in the country Anthony “Tank” Jones, and he announced it live on the Pat McAfee Show, which airs on ESPN.
On3 Sports’ Steve Wiltfong noted that because 5-star recruits have a much larger presence and carry so much notoriety,
name, image and likeness deals always come into play in a decision like Jones’.
Oregon currently has just one player listed on On3’s top 100 valuations, wide receiver Evan Stewart with his $1.7 million valuation by the site. Stewart’s season is currently in doubt as an offseason knee injury will keep him sidelined for the foreseeable future.
Much of the top 100 are entrenched quarterbacks for major programs: Drew Allar from Penn State, Arch Manning from The University of Texas and Carson Beck from the University of Miami all land there. The Ducks, though, don’t have a signal caller on their roster that makes waves in the commercial world as they did for the previous three seasons.
Quarterbacks Bo Nix and Dillon Gabriel both ranked in the top five NIL valuations during their time in Eugene, but incoming starter Dante Moore just doesn’t draw in the big bucks compared to some of his peers at other programs.
Moore also falls short compared to his teammates. According to On3’s NIL valuations, Moore is the thirteenth most valuable player on the current roster at $435,000, which ranks four spots below true freshman quarterback Akili Smith Jr. ($545,000), who is expected to redshirt this season behind Moore and Austin Novosad.
The Ducks only have three players who hold a valuation over $1 million: Stewart, running back Makhi Hughes ($1.1 million) who transferred in from Tulane University and offensive tackle Isaiah World ($1 million) who transferred in from University of Nevada, Reno.
In fact, after Stewart, the rest of the top five in that list are all transfers. Purdue transfer safety Dillon Thieneman and Northwestern transfer cornerback Theran Johnson round out the top five with $855,000 and $658,000 valuations, respectively.
According to On3’s calculations, the Ducks have a total NIL spend of $14.2 million for the team, which, given the numbers above, is spread out pretty evenly among the team. The average NIL for the roster sits at $154,000 per player even though just 18 players on the roster are reported to have a valuation above that mark.
However, the top ends of the Ducks’ valuation lists include true freshmen who hope to make a name for themselves as soon as they can. Players such as Trey McNutt, Na’eem Offord and Dakorien Moore will likely see the field at points this season — though McNutt will miss significant time after breaking his leg in practice earlier this month.
Even with a lull of major stars on the roster, the Ducks still have one of the most exciting NIL groups. The influx of young talent will have their time to shine given the lack of spotlight hogged by any individual player this season, which can only drive up their valuations.
(ABOVE) Evan Stewart celebrates yet another Oregon touchdown as they begin to pile on over the Oregon State Beavers. The Oregon Ducks travelled up to Corvallis to face their instate rival the Oregon State Beavers on Sept. 14th, 2024. (Jonathan Suni/Emerald)
