With spring football now squarely in the rear-view mirror and the dog days of late spring and summer lying just beyond the horizon, now feels like as good a time as any to re-evaluate where things stand with some of the biggest targets for the Ducks in the 2020 recruiting cycle.
Back in February, WFOD set the table for Duck fans by offering an early look at the names on both offense and defense that recruitniks should familiarize themselves with as Oregon looks to repeat their otherworldly performance on the recruiting trail last season.
Today we continue the exercise of revisiting the Ducks’ top 2020 targets by taking a position-by-position look at the recruits currently believed to be in play. At the end of the series, we’ll submit our educated long-range guess as to what Oregon’s class could look like with more than six months remaining between now and the early signing period in December.
Defensive Back
Current Commits:
(4*) Avantae Williams – 5’11”, 170 lbs. – DeLand (Fla.)
(4*) Luke Hill – 5’11”, 180 lbs. – Baltimore (Md.) St. Frances Academy
(4*) Myles Slusher – 6’0″, 181 lbs. – Broken Arrow (Okla.)
The Top Target:
(5*) Kelee Ringo – 6’2″, 205 lbs. – Scottsdale (Ariz.) Saguaro
Other prospects of note:
(4*) Darion Green-Warren – 6’0″, 187 lbs. – Harbor City (Calif.) Narbonne
(4*) Brandon Jones – 5’10”, 165 lbs. – Harbor City (Calif.) Narbonne
(4*) Ayden Hector – 6’1″, 189 lbs. – Sammamish (Wash.) Eastside Catholic
(3*) Makell Esteen – 6’1″, 170 lbs. – Lawndale (Calif.)
(N/A) Donovan Clark – 6’3″, 190 lbs. – Tacoma (Wash.) Lincoln
(4*) Clark Phillips – 5’11”, 178 lbs. – La Habra (Calif.)
(N/A) James Smith – 6’1″, 180 lbs. – Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco
(3*) Macen Williams – 5’10”, 165 lbs. – Harbor City (Calif.) Narbonne
(4*) Dwight McGlothern – 6’2″, 180 lbs. – Spring (Texas) Klein Oak
(4*) Elijhah Badger – 6’1″, 185 lbs. – Folsom (Calif.)
(3*) Jared “JJ” Greenfield – 6’0″, 180 lbs. – Harbor City (Calif.) Narbonne
(4*) Kourt Williams – 6’1″, 216 lbs. – Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco
The number of available openings in the Oregon secondary for the 2020 class has become sparse over the last week or so after the Ducks received verbal commitments from a pair of four-star prospects in Luke Hill and Myles Slusher. They join fellow four-star recruit Avantae Williams, the inaugural defensive member of Oregon’s 2020 class, to comprise a star-studded group of future defensive backs for the Ducks. Williams, who ranks as the nation’s second-best safety per 247Sports’ Composite Rankings, is a supremely athletic prospect who is perhaps best known for his spectacular hitting ability. The concern, however, is whether the Ducks will be able to hang onto the highly-touted Floridian. Miami (Fla.), Florida, and Georgia have been the schools in hot pursuit of Williams ever since his commitment to Oregon in December, making him arguably the most tenuous current commitment to the Ducks’ 2020 recruiting class. Hill and Slusher are the latest additions to Oregon’s class, and both bring a physical style of play to the cornerback position that has been missing in recent years.
Of the numerous known prospects on Oregon’s defensive back board, Scottsdale (Ariz.) Saguaro product Kelee Ringo is highest-rated member of the group according to 247. Listed at 6-foot-2 and 205 pounds, Ringo is a true specimen at the cornerback position, possessing both the impressive physical profile and the blazing speed to be a potential factor from the moment he arrives on a college campus. With elite offers from both near and far, Ringo is undoubtedly one of the nation’s most highly sought after prospects. Though the Ducks are in the mix, they likely have ground to make up behind schools such as Texas and Georgia for Ringo’s services.
Compared to Ringo, Phillips and Badger are probably safer bets to end up as Ducks at this present moment. Both players have excelled on the offensive side of the ball during their high school careers, but as they transition to the collegiate level, it’s highly likely that both players find their future home at cornerback. Each player unofficially visited Eugene this spring and returned home with designs on setting up official visits later this year, but with few spots in the secondary remaining, it’s possible that both players will have to pull the trigger sooner rather than later if they expect to be future Ducks.
Similarly, Esteen and Greenfield are two other names to closely monitor over the next several weeks and months. Like Phillips and Badger, both players took unofficial visits to Eugene this spring and came away with glowing reports of their time spent around the Oregon program. In fact, Esteen and Greenfield each came away with a host of Crystal Ball predictions submitted by 247 staff members, which could be a sign that a commitment is imminent. With the ability to play both corner and safety, Esteen and Greenfield would give the Ducks tremendous versatility in their defensive backfield.
Re-examining Oregon’s targets entering the May eval period: Quarterback
Re-examining Oregon’s targets entering the May eval period: Running back
Re-examining Oregon’s targets entering the May eval period: Wide receiver
Re-examining Oregon’s targets entering the May eval period: Tight end
Re-examining Oregon’s targets entering the May eval period: Offensive line
Re-examining Oregon’s targets entering the May eval period: Defensive line
Re-examining Oregon’s targets entering the May eval period: Linebacker