This one may come as a shock to some people.
On Monday morning, Oregon Ducks linebacker Justin Flowe announced he plans to enter the transfer portal and leave Eugene. After three seasons with the Ducks, Flowe struggled to reach his ceiling, playing in 12 games and racking up 50 total tackles.
As a former five-star recruit who was rated by 247Sports as the No. 1 inside linebacker in the nation and No. 6 overall player in the 2020 recruiting class, Flowe is the second-highest recruit to ever commit to the Ducks, behind only Kayvon Thibodeaux.
While injuries ended Flowe’s first two seasons in Eugene quickly, he stayed healthy throughout the 2022 campaign. However, Flowe still struggled to get onto the field with Dan Lanning as his head coach, playing 21.8% of all defensive snaps for Oregon. Whether it was a bad fit in the scheme or that his foot injury from 2021 delayed his development, it became clear this past season that Flowe was not playing with the same tenacity we saw in his lone game against Fresno State in 2021, when he racked up 14 tackles and a forced fumble.
Despite his recent struggles, Flowe will undoubtedly be viewed as one of the highest-profile players in the transfer portal and he will likely have a long list of potential suitors.