Akili Smith Jr. – Syndication Server

Oregon QB commit Akili Smith Jr. earns 2024 Elite 11 Finals invitation

Elite invite to the Elite 11 Finals for Oregon commit Akili Smith Jr.

One of the most notable members of the Oregon Ducks’ 2025 recruiting class has earned an elite invitation that is coveted in the recruiting world.

4-star quarterback Akili Smith Jr. announced on Wednesday that he received an invite to the Elite 11 Finals in Los Angeles later this year. The best of the best passers in the nation will be in attendance at the camp, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this summer.

Smith Jr., the son of Oregon legend Akili Smith, has been committed to the Ducks since July of 2023. He is rated by the 247Sports composite as the No. 78 overall player in the class of 2025, and the No. 8 quarterback.

Smith Jr. will join the likes of USC commit Julian Lewis, Ohio State pledge Tavien St. Clair, Notre Dame commit Deuce Knight, Texas A&M commit Husan Longstreet, Texas commit K.J. Lacey, and SMU commit Keelon Russell, among others.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Top-10 2025 WR puts Ducks among top schools

There seems to be a growing chance that the Oregon Ducks 2025 wide receiver class could be one of the best that the school has ever seen. Already, the Ducks have commitments from 4-star WR Dallas Wilson, the No. 5 WR in 2025 (24th overall), and 4-star Adrian Wilson, the No. 22 WR in 2025 (122nd overall).

They are also in the mix to now land 4-star WR Marcus Harris, one of the top skill-position players on the west coast from Mater Dei High School in California. On Tuesday, Harris announced his top schools, keeping Oregon in the mix.

Harris is rated by the 247Sports Composite as the No. 6 WR and No. 41 overall player in the 2025 class.

It doesn’t hurt that Oregon already has a commitment from 4-star QB Akili Smith Jr., the No. 5 QB in the 2025 class. By getting him on board early on, the Oregon legacy player can help recruit to Eugene and get top-rated athletes to join him with the Ducks.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=179]

Ducks off to blazing start in 2025, among top-ranked schools in national rankings

In the past few days, Oregon has added a pair of elite players in the 2025 class. They now rank as one of the best teams in the cycle.

Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks are working hard to land one of the top-rated recruiting classes in the 2024 class and one of the best blue-chip ratios in the Pac-12 Conference. They have a top 15 class at the moment.

That hasn’t stopped them from getting off to a blazing hot start on the 2025 class, for which they’ve already picked up a handful of blue-chip players and rank among the top schools in the nation.

On Monday, the Ducks landed a commitment from four-star quarterback Akili Smith Jr., the son of Oregon legend Akili Smith, a former Pac-10 Player of the Year and the No. 3 pick in the 1999 NFL draft. The Ducks also have commitments from four-star wide receiver Dallas Wilson, the No. 24 player in the 2024 class, and four-star WR Adrian Wilson, the No. 163 player in the class.

Earlier in the year, Oregon also grabbed a commitment from three-star interior offensive lineman Sandman Thompson.

So with four commitments already in 2025, where do the Ducks stand in the national rankings? Let’s take a look:

Where does Akili Smith Jr. rank among highest-rated QB recruits in UO history?

Akili Smith Jr. is rated as the No. 5 QB in the 2025 class. Here is where he stands among the top-rated QBs to ever commit to the Ducks.

The outlandish success stemming from the Oregon Ducks Saturday Night Live camp over the weekend continues to come to the forefront, and Dan Lanning and his staff landed a massive commitment on Monday to show for it.

4-star 2025 quarterback Akili Smith Jr. announced his commitment to Oregon, following in the footsteps of his father, Akili Smith, who won the Pac-12 Player of the Year for the Ducks in 1998 and went on to become the No. 3 overall selection in the 1999 NFL Draft.

Smith is the fourth member of Oregon’s 2024 class, which is now one of the best in the nation.

The Ducks have had great success recruiting the QB position over the past decade, so we wanted to look at where Smith ranks among the top-rated passers to come to Oregon in school history.

Here is where the Oregon legacy player stands:

Oregon adds legacy player with the signing of QB Akili Smith, Jr.

Thanks to Oregon’s SNL recruiting events, the Ducks were able to secure a commitment from QB Akili Smith, Jr.

It’s always nice to come home again.

The Oregon Ducks were able to sign Class of 2025 quarterback and 4-star recruit Akili Smith, Jr. shortly after their “Saturday Night Live” recruiting event at Autzen Stadium.

Of course that name should be very familiar to Duck fans as Smith’s father played for Oregon in 1997 and 1998 as a highly-touted junior college player out of San Diego. Smith parlayed his two great seasons in Eugene to become the No. 1 draft pick of the Cincinnati Bengals in 1999.

Thankfully now, the Ducks won’t have to wait two seasons of junior college ball to see what the younger Smith can do on the field. Like his dad, Smith is a tall quarterback at 6-foot-5 and weighs 200 pounds. But Smith is considered more of a dropback, NFL-style quarterback than his dad.

With the signing of Smith, the Ducks’ recruiting efforts for the Class of 2025 are off to a great start. He’s the third 4-star recruit to commit to Oregon with receivers Dallas Wilson out of Tampa, Flor. and Adrian Wilson out of Pflugerville, Texas.

Ducks pick up prediction to land Oregon legacy player and elite 2025 QB

The positive results from Oreogn’s Saturday Night Live camp over the weekend continue to pour in.

On Sunday afternoon, 247Sports national recruiting analyst Greg Biggins logged a prediction for the Ducks to land a commitment from four-star quarterback Akili Smith Jr., the son of Oregon legend Akili Smith.

Smith Jr. is rated by 247Sports as the No. 62 overall player in the class of 2025, and the No. 5 overall QB. He was in Eugene over the weekend and has taken multiple visits to see the Ducks over the past couple of years.

The elder Smith rose to national prominence during his senior season for the Ducks in 1998, throwing 32 touchdowns and leading the conference in passing yards. Smith was named the Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Year before being drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals with the third pick.

It is still early in Smith Jr.’s recruitment, but it’s clear the Ducks have a strong relationship built with the Oregon legacy player, and they should feel good about where they are at. There is no word on when a commitment could come from Smith, who is entering his junior year of high school at Lincoln in San Diego, California.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Ducks become heavy favorites to land 4-star Oregon legacy QB Akili Smith Jr.

It isn’t hard to imagine seeing an Akili Smith play inside Autzen Stadium again down the road.

After the great Akili led Oregon to so much success decades ago, it appears that the Ducks might be in line to land his son, 4-star QB Akili Smith Jr. Over the past week or so, a number of predictions have come in on the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine for Smith to commit to Oregon. He is rated by the 247Sports Composite as the No. 94 overall player in the class of 2025, and the No. 7 QB.

Smith Sr. was the starting QB in Eugene for the 1997 and 1998 seasons. throwing for 45 touchdowns in his two seasons.

Akili Smith Jr.’s Recruiting Profile

Gators to get this 4-star west coast QB on campus for visit

Chalk up another big visit coming up for Florida, this time a Golden State blue-chip passer.

Florida football has been hosting prep prospects from around the nation since the end of the dead period, keeping Billy Napier and Co. busy as the coaching staff burns the midnight oil evaluating and wooing those visiting high school athletes.

Among those making the trek to Gainesville in the near future is four-star quarterback [autotag]Akili Smith Jr[/autotag]. out of Vista Murrieta (California) in the 2025 recruiting cycle. The 6-foot-5-inch, 200-pound signal-caller plans on venturing outside his region to make a stop in the Swamp this coming weekend, according to 247Sports.

“I’m really excited, this is my first visit outside the West Coast. My dad has been talking to the staff and then I talked with Ryan O’Hara on Sunday.

“I don’t really know what to expect but I’ve heard great things about how big SEC football is. I know it’s crazy out there so I’m looking forward to experiencing all that and I’m sure I’ll have a good time.”

The blue-chip passer recently made a trip out to Berkeley to visit the Cal Golden Bears and plans to stop at his father’s alma mater, the Oregon Ducks, for their spring intrasquad scrimmage on April 29. He also expressed his desire to visit the Ohio State Buckeyes, Michigan Wolverines, Florida State Seminoles and UCLA Bruins this summer.

Smith is unrated and unranked according to 247Sports and the 247Sports composite while the On3 industry ranking has him rated at four stars, and ranked at No. 55 overall and No. 5 at his position nationally. The Arizona Wildcats hold the top spot on On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine with a 79.3% chance of landing him, while Oregon follows behind at 6.3% and the Grambling State Tigers and Michigan trail at 5.4% and 4.5%, respectively.

[lawrence-auto-related count=5 category=1368]

[mm-video type=video id=01gxxeqq2vhjmccteth4 playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01f5k5y2jb3twsvdg4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gxxeqq2vhjmccteth4/01gxxeqq2vhjmccteth4-2346b84476bb420195db0f813431176e.jpg]

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.