There was some initial confusion last Thursday night when highly touted Norco (Calif.) running back Jaydn Ott tweeted that he would be attending the University of Oregon prior to arriving in Eugene for an unofficial visit over the weekend.
After all, Ott is a prospect from the class of 2022, and the idea of a rising sophomore finding the right college for him with three years to go before he even graduates high school seems borderline preposterous.
But despite the initial miscommunication, it turns out that there was some truth to Ott’s initial words, as the ninth grader told 247Sports’ Greg Biggins on Saturday that he has in fact committed to the Ducks.
Norco (Calif.) ’22 RB Jaydn Ott breaks down his weekend commitment and why he pulled the trigger so early in the process https://t.co/8maJedZpLF pic.twitter.com/PCN46wHTXF
— Greg Biggins (@GregBiggins) April 14, 2019
With Ott’s commitment, the Ducks receive their first verbal pledge to their 2022 class and a significant one at that, as Ott is widely considered to be one of the nation’s top underclassmen at the running back position.
Ott commits to Oregon after having netted scholarship offers from Oregon, Oregon State, Colorado, and UNLV, though it’s expected that he’ll collect far more between now and when his recruitment comes to an official close at the conclusion of his senior year.
Below we take a closer look at Ott’s game, examining his weaknesses and strengths, as well as projecting how he may make an impact for the Ducks when he ultimately arrives on campus.
Notable weaknesses:
- Needs to continue adding strength: Pretty much any evaluation you see of a rising high school sophomore should be taken with some healthy skepticism. Mostly due to the fact that the prospect in question often has roughly 3+ years of physical, mental, and emotional development to go before even stepping foot on a college campus. With that, an athlete like Ott, in particular, has ways to go, notably as it relates to adding strength to his 5-foot-10, 170-pound frame. Individually, this should be a major point of emphasis for Ott in the coming years.
- Continue developing as a weapon out of the backfield: Though already an accomplished weapon on the ground through just one year of high school ball, Ott is still very much a work in progress in the passing game. Improving his hands and overall versatility out of the backfield will help take his game to another level.
Notable strengths:
- Terrific burst, open field speed: Give him a crease and he’ll make you pay. Ott’s ability to reach top speed almost instantly and run away from defenders when he reaches the second level is what has many thinking he has elite potential.
- Decisive runner: You don’t find much hesitation from Ott once he receives a handoff. One of the best qualities a running back can have is decisiveness, and Ott demonstrates this in spades throughout his freshman film. If Ott finds a hole, there’s a good chance he’s hitting it with authority.
- Impressive balance, agility: Another one of Ott’s most remarkable attributes is his ability to maintain balance and momentum despite taking hits from defenders. Coupled with his terrific start and stop ability and impressive change of direction and lateral quickness, it’s no wonder Ott is widely considered one of the top underclassmen in the state of California.
Overall outlook:
Kudos to Ott and Oregon if this commitment stands the test of time. It’s an extremely rare thing to find a recruit who stands by a verbal commitment to a school for three years before ultimately signing a letter of intent with said school, but the Ducks will try to accomplish this feat nonetheless. In Ott, Oregon gets a player who shows early shades of current and former Duck running backs such as Travis Dye, LaMichael James, and Jeremiah Johnson. In fact, Ott hails from the same school that notably produced both Dye brothers. That connection, plus Oregon’s recent success in producing top flight running backs, PLUS Cristobal and his staff’s remarkable success recruiting Southern California the past few cycles gives the Ducks as good a shot as any to hold onto Ott. But three years is a mighty long time, both in the life of a teenager and in the world of college football recruiting. The future looks awfully bright for Ott, and because of that, Duck fans should be hopeful for what could come to pass in late 2021 or early 2022. But it would be wise not make too much out of Ott’s announcement in the here and now.