Oregon’s smoldering streak of verbal commitments to the 2020 class this summer started with a commitment from an offensive lineman. On Tuesday, that trench theme continued.
Beginning with the pledge from Honolulu (Hawaii) St. Francis School product Faaope Laloulu in early June, the Ducks landed their fourth offensive line prospect in the 2020 class, and their second in the last four days, as Scottsdale (Ariz.) Saguaro tackle Jaylan Jeffers made the call for Oregon on Tuesday. This coming on the heels of Saturday’s commitment from three-star offensive line prospect Jonathan Denis and Monday’s stunning announcement from four-star wide receiver Johnny Wilson.
COMMITTED‼️ pic.twitter.com/angaejvslv
— Jaylan Jeffers (@jaylan_jeffers) July 30, 2019
Ranked as the 14th-best prospect in the state of Arizona and the 40th-best offensive tackle in the country per 247Sports’ Composite Rankings, Jeffers chose the Ducks after landing notable offers from USC, Oklahoma State, Michigan, and LSU. With his commitment, the Ducks boast the 12th-best recruiting class in the nation and the top-ranked class in the Pac-12.
Below we take a closer look at Jeffers’ 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:
- Frame needs to fill out: Depending on your outlook, this could be both a positive or a negative. At 6-foot-6 and 260 pounds, Jeffers has an intriguing athletic profile that projects him to a number of positions along the offensive line. However, he’ll likely need to increase size and improve strength before he’s a player that head coach Mario Cristobal and offensive line coach Alex Mirabal can rely upon.
- Can improve initial punch: One area of Jeffers’ game that could stand to improve is his initial punch at the point of attack. Generally speaking, Jeffers’ hand placement is pretty sound and doesn’t involve too much lunging, but his initial punch lacks power compared to other more highly-touted prospects at his position. With increased strength and improved technique, this is a weakness that can be shored up.
Notable strengths:
- Plays with a mean streak: No one can say that Jeffers is a softy when he steps between the lines on Friday nights. He’s tenacious at the point of attack and rarely fails to finish blocks once he’s engaged.
- Quality athlete: Jeffers certainly doesn’t disappoint from a raw athleticism perspective. He moves very well for an athlete of his size, which is a byproduct of quality footwork and balance. As he continues to mature, this is an area of his game that should only improve.
- Versatile: Because Jeffers is such a good athlete with such a malleable frame, he’s a player that could conceivably play either tackle or guard at the next level. His utility for the Ducks in the offensive trenches could eventually make him one of the more irreplaceable members of the offensive line.
Overall outlook:
The offensive line will always be the object of Mario Cristobal’s eye, but it’s even more so the case during the 2020 recruiting cycle with the Ducks set to lose six offensive linemen at the end of the upcoming season. The good news is, in Jeffers, the Ducks have landed a player who is capable of filling a number of different positions up front. Listed as a tackle for Scottsdale powerhouse Saguaro High School, Jeffers could also be a solid fit for the Ducks as a future guard, as his athleticism and body type could lend itself to him providing much needed depth for Oregon’s assumed starters at guard in 2020 in Alex Forsyth and Malaesala Aumavae-Laulu. Regardless, Jeffers’ potential as a utility player along the offensive line is perhaps his most coveted quality, and he serves as an important piece to what figures to be a large class of offensive linemen the Ducks sign this cycle.