The career arc that has plotted Taj Griffin’s time at Oregon has been one marked by ever-changing roles and undoubted injury frustration, sprinkled with occasional moments of brilliance.

A four-star recruit who was rated as the nation’s No. 1 all-purpose running back in the class of 2015 by 247Sports, Griffin was considered a signature piece to the Ducks’ recruiting class that season; a class that is known particularly as one rife with high-profile misses (see Canton Kaumatule, Travis Jonsen, Alex Ofodile, and Kirk Merritt, to name a few) as it is anything else.

Despite suffering a season-ending knee injury his senior year at McEachern High School in Powder Springs, Georgia (located about 25 miles northwest of Atlanta), Griffin arrived in Eugene the following year prepared to make an early impact. And make an impact he did. In fact, by just about every reasonable measure, Griffin’s true freshman season at Oregon has been his best to date.

In 2015, Griffin finished the year as Oregon’s second leading rusher behind Royce Freeman, and was fourth amongst all Ducks in all-purpose yardage with 732 yards from scrimmage (570 rushing, 162 receiving), to go along with four touchdowns.

It was the type of season that was supposed to foreshadow bigger things to come; a coming out party of sorts that was to launch Griffin’s ascent as “the next De’Anthony Thomas” at Oregon, even if his debut campaign didn’t quite feature the same level of sizzle as the Crenshaw product’s.

Instead, however, it has left fans, reporters, and people around the program wondering if that’s as bright as Griffin’s star will get.

Prior to suffering his second season-ending injury in three seasons, Griffin’s sophomore year was marred by inconsistent performances during a 2016 campaign in which the Ducks finished 4-8 – their worst record since 1991.

After an offseason underscored by rehabilitation and Willie Taggart’s arrival as the new head coach at Oregon, Griffin entered 2017 with a fresh outlook and a new position, as the then-junior was moved to wide receiver during fall camp to help provide experience and added juice to a unit in search of stars following the dismissal of Darren Carrington earlier in the summer.

Yet, the switch to wide receiver didn’t seem to have the desired effect in re-igniting Griffin’s penchant for playmaking. Griffin finished last season with just 210 all-purpose yards – a career low – after appearing in only eight games. Combined with his sophomore season, which saw Griffin post 272 all-purpose yards prior to his injury, the senior-to-be has amassed only 482 all-purpose yards since his breakout debut in 2015.

With just one more year of eligibility left, the final chapter in Griffin’s career at Oregon waits to be written, and one could argue that his senior season may be his best opportunity yet to make the kind of impact that was expected of him when he signed his letter of intent over three years ago.

After moving back to running back this spring, Griffin joins fellow senior Tony Brooks-James as the lone seniors in the Oregon backfield. He’s also a member of a unit lacking a true marquee name.

For the past four seasons, Freeman was the face of the Ducks’ ground game, piling up yardage and touchdown totals that made him the school’s all-time leading rusher. Now, alongside Brooks-James, Griffin finds himself as somewhat of a forgotten man in the midst of what figures to be a heated battle for carries that will also include sophomore Darrian Felix, redshirt freshmen CJ Verdell and Cyrus Habibi-Likio, and true freshman Travis Dye. Griffin will also be working with his fourth position coach in as many years, as he’ll take direction from new Oregon running backs coach Jim Mastro, who along with Ducks offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo, will be charged with finding ways to incorporate a talent like Griffin into an offense chock full of skilled, yet unproven, playmakers.

Given the underwhelming nature of the Ducks’ 2015 class among its top prospects, it’s easy to assume that Griffin will follow suit.

But with a return to good health and a defined role entering his final fall camp at Oregon, one can’t help but wonder whether the unpleasant twists and turns in Griffin’s career could ultimately lead to him to being one of 2018’s most pleasant surprises.