Oregon reaching new heights in recruiting under Dan Lanning

When Oregon hired Dan Lanning in December 2021, the Ducks were coming off one of their best recruiting stretches in recent memory during Mario Cristobal’s tenure.

Between the 2018 and 2021 classes, UO finished an average of 12th in the Rivals Industry Team Recruiting Rankings, up nearly a dozen spots per year from their 2014-2017 classes. When Cristobal left for Miami, a lot of questions lingered about whether the person who would replace him could replicate that success.

Enter Dan Lanning. The former Georgia defensive coordinator hit the ground running and kept the Ducks’ 2022 class together — signing a group that ended up finishing No. 11 nationally. Since then, he has taken the program to an entirely new level on the trail.

Their 2023 class, which ranked No. 7, is the lowest-ranked full class of his tenure. He followed that up with top-4 classes in both 2024 and 2025, and he looks to be right on schedule again in 2026.

Despite holding only 17 commitments — 10-15 fewer than each of the three teams ahead of them — the Ducks hold the No. 4 class in this year’s rankings and lead the country with four five-star commitments. Lanning and his staff have done it by dipping into traditional pipelines like California, but also landing top prospects out of Texas, Alabama, Nevada, North Carolina and Maryland.

Six of the nation’s top-50 prospects are committed to the Ducks, something that no school — not Alabama, Georgia, Texas, USC or Notre Dame — can claim.

Should they finish where they currently stand, their average class ranking will have jumped from 12th in 2018-21 to 4th (2023-2026) under Lanning’s watch. Combined with how successful they’ve been in the transfer portal, Oregon has the kind of roster that has championship potential year-in and year-out, something they’ve not seen in Eugene.

To check out the Ducks’ full class, look below:

Commitments by position for the Ducks

Quarterback
Four-star Bryson Beaver, No. 195 NATL. (No. 15 QB)

Running Back
Four-star Tradarian Ball, No. 80 NATL. (No. 7 RB)

Wide Receiver
Four-star Messiah Hampton, No. 103 NATL. (No. 12 WR)

Tight End
Five-star Kendre’ Harrison, No. 22 NATL. (No. 2 TE)

Offensive tackle
Five-star Immanuel Iheanacho, No. 6 NATL. (No. 2 OT)

Interior offensive line
Four-star Tommy Tofi, No. 144 NATL. (No. 6 IOL)
Three-star Koloi Keli, No. 951 NATL. (No. 91 IOL)

EDGE
Five-star Anthony Jones, No. 23 NATL. (No. 4 EDGE)
Four-star Prince Tavizon, No. 241 NATL. (No. 28 EDGE)
Three-star Dutch Horisk, No. 915 NATL. (No. 89 EDGE)

Defensive Line
Four-star Tony Cumberland, No. 91 NATL. (No. 7 DL)

Linebacker
Four-star Tristan Phillips, No. 332 NATL. (No. 23 LB)

Cornerback
Four-star Davon Benjamin, No. 42 NATL. (No. 6 CB)

Safety
Five-star Jett Washington, No. 18 NATL. (No. 2 SAF)
Four-star Devin Jackson, No. 128 NATL. (No. 12 SAF)
Four-star Xavier Lherisse, No. 355 NATL. (No. 32 SAF)

Athlete
Four-star Jalen Lott, No. 50 NATL. (No. 2 ATH)