If we’re going to look at things from an objective standpoint, it’s fair to say that fans of the Oregon Ducks have been a bit impatient.
When former 5-star receiver Jurrion Dickey landed in Eugene ahead of the 2023 season, fans expected him to have an instant impact, and find a role in the offense right away. Dickey was the highest-rated WR to sign with the Ducks since Cameron Colvin and was rated as the 18th-best player in his recruiting class. It’s understandable why crazed Oregon fanatics were hoping to see him pop.
On Saturday, though, wide receiver coach Junior Adams provided some much-needed realism.
“He still hasn’t been here a year yet. Sometimes we forget about that.”
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It’s often easy to look past the fact that Dickey has been on campus and with the Ducks for a matter of eight months. It’s easier to ignore that fact when you talk to some of Jurrion’s teammates who are able to watch what he does each and every day at practice.
More than the physical growth and his production on the field, what has allowed the redshirt freshman to take a leap this offseason has been his mental growth. No longer is he focused solely on learning the ins and outs of the playbook, and taking an extra beat to get lined up. Now he’s in a position where he’s helping teach the young guys on the roster.
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“Even though he’s a young guy, he’s teaching the freshmen that just came in, which is really big on his part,” Tez Johnson said. “When we first got here, we tried to get Jurrion to know the playbook fast. We tried to force it on him. And it was kind of hectic for him at first, but he knew we was trying to help him. So now that he’s teaching the little guys, us older guys see that and really, really admire what he’s doing.”
Adams says that it’s his maturity that’s been the biggest factor in Dickey’s growth off of the field, and his commitment to his craft.
“He’s gotten this far because he’s putting in the work,” Adams said. “He’s understanding the day-to-day, what time he comes into the building every day. When practice is over he’s getting straight to the film. He’s taking good notes in meetings.”
All of that has resulted in a supremely talented player who is starting to come into his own. While a knee injury held him out for the majority of his freshman season, Dickey now enters his second year in Eugene with hopes of finding a role in what Traeshon Holden calls the best receiver room in the nation. It’s not hard to see a world where he’s eventually leading that room.
“He’s got it, for sure,” Holden said. “Jurrion’s gonna keep getting better.”
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