Over the past decade or so, the Oregon Ducks have expanded their recruiting footprint to span across the nation. No longer do they just focus on the top players out west, but rather they take aim at the best players from the North East, to the deep South, to the talent-rich lands of Texas, and everywhere in between.
Despite all of that, on of the most fertile grounds for Oregon over the years has been Southern California, where they’ve gone toe to toe with the USC Trojans in attempts to land some of the best players in the nation, quite successfully, I might add.
That’s what makes this coming weekend a little bit different. While every big game offers an opportunity for coaches to recruit and promote their program, the first Oregon vs. USC game since 2020 offers a bit of an elevated stage.
It will be played at night, it will have high stakes, and it will be a picturesque environment inside Autzen Stadium.
“It’s gonna be huge,” Lanning said of the opportunity on Monday night. “It’s huge for the atmosphere that our fans create, it’s huge for the way that our team performs. Recruiting in these scenarios, you don’t always get to spend as much time with the recruits as you want because you’re spending time preparing for the game, but that will be a big, big piece of this weekend.”
Already, some high-profile prospects are letting it be known on social media that they are headed to Eugene for the weekend, and as the week goes on, we will continue to see more visitors join the RSVP list.
As of now, here is an updated look at who is expected to take a visit to Oregon to watch the Ducks take on the Trojans: