De-commitments are as much a part of the recruiting process as anything else. The ebb and flow of the recruiting cycle features them on a near daily basis, as players have a change of heart (sometimes on multiple occasions), coaching staffs turnover, and unforeseen circumstances arise throughout the calendar year that impact a recruit’s final decision.
No program is exempt or immune.
On Tuesday, the Ducks experienced the not-so-sunny side of the process when Louisville (Ky.) Ballard four-star linebacker Jared Casey backed off his commitment to Oregon following a recent in-home visit from assistant coaches at Kentucky. The Wildcats have now emerged as the overwhelming favorites to land Casey following his de-commitment.
With Casey out of the mix in all likelihood, Oregon’s 21-man recruiting class still ranks as the nation’s fourth-best recruiting class, though it resides only percentage points ahead of LSU in 247Sports’ Composite Team Rankings.
Below, WFOD analyzes Casey’s de-commitment and how it impacts the Ducks with three weeks to go before the early signing period begins on December 19.
The glass half-empty outlook:
De-commitments are rarely, if ever, moments that engender feelings of positivity. In Casey, it appears the Ducks will lose out on a player who 247Sports had pegged as the nation’s 18th-best inside linebacker per their industry generated Composite Rankings. With the ability to play both inside and outside linebacker, Casey offered the Ducks tremendous potential versatility at the position, which was one in which depth was tested to a critical degree for a second straight season in 2018. Oregon will also miss out on a player who demonstrates great physicality and is physically developed for a player his age, making him a solid bet to find playing time as a true freshman despite some of the depth the Ducks presume to return in La’Mar Winston, Keith Simms, Sampson Niu, Isaac Slade-Matautia, Adrian Jackson, and even Troy Dye, should he elect to return for his senior season instead of declaring for the NFL draft.
The glass half-full outlook:
While de-commitments aren’t exactly moments to celebrate, they don’t always portend gloom and doom either. Often times they simply are what they are. The good news for Oregon is that the staff has done an excellent job of addressing the linebacker position during the 2019 cycle. Even with Casey’s de-commitment, the Ducks have four highly-touted verbal commits in four-star prospects Mase Funa and Ge’mon Eaford and three-star prospects Isaac Townsend and Treven Ma’ae. In fact, Funa and Eaford are two of the highest-rated linebackers to ever commit to the Ducks, a sign that the Oregon coaching staff has no problem attracting some of the nation’s best talent to the position. In short, missing out on Casey is far from back-breaking. Not only that, but Oregon will return a great deal of experience at the position with aforementioned players above, plus MJ Cunningham, Andrew Johnson, and D.J. Johnson, who each redshirted this season.
Who are Oregon’s remaining options at linebacker?
With Casey set to move on, so too must the Oregon coaching staff. Though the Ducks wouldn’t be in a bad position if they settled for signing four linebackers, look for the them to add at least one more prospect to the current remaining group. Per WFOD’s most up-to-date version of the 2019 Recruiting Big Board, three-star JUCO product Caleb Johnson seems to be the best bet to take Casey’s place at this juncture. Originally from Murrieta, Calif., Johnson has emerged as one of the top linebackers at the junior college level plying his trade at Fullerton College. Texas is believed to be the stiffest competition for Johnson’s services, though the 6-foot-1, 215-pound is expected to take an official visit to Eugene sometime in December. Beyond Johnson, Menlo Park (Calif.) Menlo-Atherton four-star Daniel Heimuli and Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco three-star Ralen Goforth are the next most likely options, yet it’s believed the Ducks trail by a notable margin for both players at this time.