Tag: Dont’e Thornton

Former Oregon WR Dont’e Thornton transfer to Tennessee Volunteers

Former Oregon WR Dont’e Thornton will officially transfer to Tennessee, he announced on Monday.

One of the more notable players to leave the Oregon Ducks and enter the transfer portal this offseason has finally found a home, with wide receiver Dont’e Thornton announcing that he will commit to the Tennessee Volunteers and head to the SEC.

Thornton is an intriguing prospect, and was one of the top receivers in the 2021 recruiting class. He did not quite reach his ceiling in Eugene, whether that was due to poor utilization or being buried on the depth chart. However, in Knoxville, he will have a chance to fill a big need as Jaylin Hyatt moves on.

Dont’e Thronton’s Transfer Portal Profile

Could Penn State welcome back a former commit who is in the transfer portal?

Penn State could have a second chance to secure a commitment from this Oregon transfer portal receiver

Penn State went 2-0 against Auburn on the football field the past two seasons, and the Nittany Lions are hoping to score a recruiting victory against the Tigers with a wide receiver in the transfer portal. And this wide receiver is one Penn State is very familiar with.

Penn State and Auburn are believed to be the final two schools in the running for Dont’e Thornton, a wide receiver who entered the transfer portal this month from Oregon. Prior to his commitment to Oregon in the Class of 2021, Thornton was previously committed to Penn State as early as 2019. Thornton, a four-star wide receiver in 2019, committed to Penn State in February 2019 but backed off his commitment later that summer. In 2020, Oregon emerged as the favorite to land Thornton’s commitment.

The Baltimore native is coming off a season with a late breakthrough on the field with 17 catches for 366 yards and a touchdown. Interestingly, according to our friends at Ducks Wire, neither Penn State nor Auburn were among the top schools in Thornton’s final stages of the recruiting process. Yet, it is these two schools who appear to be the biggest players in his transfer portal recruitment.

247Sports has yet to record any predictions for Thornton’s transfer destination at this time, but the On3 prediction machine is heavily in favor of Auburn. According to On3’s prediction calculation,  Auburn has a 97.3% chance of securing Thornton’s transfer commitment. But it should be noted that figure could be heavily influenced by a recent official visit to Auburn’s campus last week.

Considering how many times Thornton visited Penn State during his high school recruiting process with unofficial visits, football camps, and official visits, the lack of visits to Penn State now should not be too concerning as he is likely extremely familiar with what Penn State’s campus is like both in and out of season. Those previous trips don’t weigh in on the current calculation from On3’s prediction machine.

Penn State is also believed to be active in the transfer portal with former West Virginia wide receiver [autotag]Kaden Prather[/autotag], another former recruiting target Penn State missed out on originally. Penn State has a need for wide receiver depth out of the transfer portal with [autotag]Parker Washington[/autotag] declaring for the NFL draft and [autotag]Mitchell Tinsley[/autotag] graduating. Tinsley was brought to the Penn State program for the 2022 season out of the transfer portal from Western Kentucky.

[mm-video type=video id=01gm697ajexnqj2r083y playlist_id=01ey902ehrs6e9bvhw player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gm697ajexnqj2r083y/01gm697ajexnqj2r083y-a420215c46371175986a850716444027.jpg]

[listicle id=26802]

[vertical-gallery id=26804]

[lawrence-related id=27520,27518,27511,27505,27497,27474]

Follow Kevin McGuire on Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

Follow Nittany Lions Wire on Twitter and like us on Facebook for continuing Penn State coverage and discussion. Let us know your thoughts by leaving a comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

PAC-12 receiver among transfers visiting the Plains this weekend

The transfer window is in its early stages, and Auburn is off to a hot start in its pursuit of reeling in portal talent.

The transfer window is in its early stages, and Auburn is off to a hot start in its pursuit of reeling in portal talent.

Hugh Freeze and staff have already welcomed former Mississippi State wide receiver, [autotag]RaRa Thomas[/autotag], to campus. Thomas was expected to visit Auburn this weekend but stopped by a day early. He is also set to visit Alabama and Georgia according to Jason Caldwell of Auburn Undercover.

Christian Clemente, also of Auburn Undercover, is reporting that two other members of the transfer portal are planning to visit campus this weekend. One of those is a receiver who saw significant action for the Oregon Ducks this season.

Wide receiver [autotag]Dont’e Thornton[/autotag] is among those visiting Auburn this weekend. Thornton reeled in 17 catches for 366 yards and a touchdown for the Ducks in 2022. He played in 11 games this season, catching 70.8% of passes thrown in his direction according to Pro Football Focus.

The Tigers are also set to host offensive lineman [autotag]Jordan Brown[/autotag] this weekend. Brown played for Charlotte last season, appearing in five games at left tackle for the 49ers. He played a total of 62 snaps in 2022 and received a PFF grade of 60.6.

The final known visitor of the weekend will be four-star quarterback [autotag]Marcel Reed[/autotag]. Reed is committed to Ole Miss, but Freeze has made a late push in hopes to change his mind. He visited Reed in Nashville on Wednesday and succeeded in his attempt to get him to visit campus.

The December early signing period begins on Dec. 21, and the current transfer portal window closes on Jan. 11.

[mm-video type=video id=01gk7w68frz3hg4dykxj playlist_id=01eqbyzb4ahnasj2m3 player_id=01f5k5y2jb3twsvdg4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gk7w68frz3hg4dykxj/01gk7w68frz3hg4dykxj-d03a338f6f99fc341e9930fa8bf0896b.jpg]

[listicle id=58595]

Position Outlook: How future of Oregon’s WR room looks after recent transfers, recruiting news

A look at how Oregon’s WR room stacks up in the coming years after recent transfers, recruiting news.

At this point in the college football season, nearly everyone in the nation is seeing their roster go through a makeover of sorts. For some teams, that means a complete overhaul, and droves of players decide to enter the transfer portal and find a new home. Other teams will see numerous players leave for the NFL draft, leaving a spot to fill behind them. A lot of schools will also have the prospect of highly-rated recruits coming to town to fill a need.

For the Oregon Ducks, we’ve got a little bit of all three of those scenarios. We’ve already seen a few players enter the transfer portal, and as the offseason grows longer, you can expect more to declare for the NFL draft. That allows us to take a look at some position groups as a whole and assess how the future looks.

Today, we want to look closely at the wide receiver room. With news that Dont’e Thornton intends to transfer, plus the loss of Seven McGee from weeks ago, it’s clear that this position will look different next year than it did this last season.

Let’s take a closer look.

Oregon WR Dont’e Thornton announces intention to enter the transfer portal

Dont’e Thornton is entering the transfer portal after struggling to reach his ceiling in Eugene.

The first of what is likely to be a long list of players for the Oregon Ducks to enter the transfer portal has come.

Wide receiver Dont’e Thornton announced on Monday night that he plans to enter the portal and look for a new team once the portal window opens on December 5.

Thornton, who is a former 4-star recruit, found some success late in the season after an injury to WR Chase Cota made room for him in the starting lineup, but he was never able to find his ceiling in Eugene after being a highly-touted recruit from Baltimore coming to Oregon in 2021.

A lot was made over the offseason about how much improvement Thornton had made, and that he was in line for a breakout season, but he struggled to get onto the field early on in the year. It does not come as a surprise that he will be leaving the Ducks.

It should be worth noting that, before his commitment to Oregon, Thornton listed the Arizona State Sun Devils as one of his top schools. Might he be one of the players to follow Kenny Dillingham to Tempe? We’ll see.

Dont’e Thornton Transfer Portal Profile

With Chase Cota’s availability up in the air, Oregon’s WR depth gets chance to shine

Chase Cota seems unlikely to play vs. Colorado, giving way for guys like Dont’e Thornton and other Oregon WRs to step into the spotlight.

At the moment, it’s technically unclear whether or not Oregon Ducks wide receiver Chase Cota will be taking the field on Saturday as the team lines up against the Colorado Buffaloes for a 12:30 p.m. PT kick-off on ESPN.

As someone who covers the team, though, if I were to read the room and give you my opinion on the matter, Cota will not be playing, and likely will not be traveling to Boulder either. The veteran transfer WR from UCLA went down with an apparent knee injury last week against California in the first half and returned to the sideline after halftime in street clothes. He has missed both practices that were open to media members this week. When asked about Cota’s status on Monday night, head coach Dan Lanning said that the injury was still “to be determined,” without an accurate timeline for return.

[lawrence-related id=32867]

With all of that being said, it looks like the Ducks are going to have to prepare for a game without their No. 2 WR on the roster. All that means is that the guys lower on the depth chart will have a chance to shine with the greater opportunity.

Paging Dont’e Thornton. Dont’e Thornton, please pick up.

Last week, Thornton saw more of the field than he has in a while, recording 36 total snaps. Not much opportunity came of it though, with Thornton catching one of his two targets for 7 yards. On the year, Thornton — who was billed as a potential breakout candidate before the season started — has just 8 catches for 129 yards and has fallen down the depth chart behind guys like Troy Franklin, Kris Hutson, and the aforementioned Chota.

There’s now a chance to turn things around, though. We can expect that the Ducks are going to try and air it out a little bit against a suspect Colorado defense, and with more targets up for grabs, Thornton has been identified as a player who step into the spotlight. Lanning also highlighted the depth at the position for Oregon, pointing out that any number of guys could be in line for an increased workload.

[lawrence-related id=32935]

“We’ll see. I think it will be some of the same receivers that we saw last week,” Lanning said on Wednesday. “We got to see more Delgado, we got to see more Thornton. We have a good group there, a group that works really hard, and I think we’ll be able to see a lot of those guys make a good contribution to us.”

With the multipleness of Oregon’s offense, it’s hard to pinpoint which players are going to step up. Selfishly, I led with Thornton as my candidate because I propped him up coming into the year, buying into the narrative that was being pumped out regarding his commitment and his growth over the offseason. In reality, there’s a good chance that we see a heavy dose of Hutson alongside Franklin, rather than a new WR enter the mix. After Cota went down last weekend, it was Hutson who stepped up, catching 4 of his 5 targets for 64 yards after moving from spread out wide into the slot.

[lawrence-related id=32854]

“Hutson got to move positions a little bit. I thought that was really positive to see him be able to change positions within a game and have some success and not have a lot of mental errors,” Lanning said earlier this week. “He was able to go out there and do something he hadn’t really practiced as much during the week and execute at a high level.”

So with Colorado scheming up for Oregon and likely presuming that Cota will be unavailable, though no official determination has been made, it will be hard to know where to look to try and slow the Ducks down. According to QB Bo Nix, that’s the beauty of the Kenny Dillingham offense.

“I think we’ve done a good job of rotating guys in this year,” Nix said on Wednesday. “Coach (Junior) Adams does a really good job of getting those guys ready to roll. We’ve got guys out there like Troy and Kris who are going to continue to play well. Tight ends, running backs, we use a lot of those by committee. We throw the kitchen table at defenses, so there’s a lot that they’ve got to prepare for.”

[mm-video type=video id=01ggwymz62zk0nh2317e playlist_id=01f27mq9z7hjgk6vc6 player_id=01f5k5y2jb3twsvdg4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01ggwymz62zk0nh2317e/01ggwymz62zk0nh2317e-b377102b219f7e7dfc834f2a6c205e78.jpg]

[listicle id=32947]

‘He lives in the WR room;’ Dont’e Thorton is putting in the work to have special 2022 season

“Dont’e is one of those guys that literally lives in the receiver room, like, every time I’m coming in there, he’s sitting at the computer and he’s watching something.”

After a true-freshman season that saw minimal chances to shine, wide receiver Dont’e Thornton finished the year on a high note. The Ducks’ young star hauled in 4 catches for 90 yards and a touchdown in the Alamo Bowl against the Oklahoma Sooners.

Now he’s looking to carry that success into a sophomore campaign that could see Thornton rise to the top of the Ducks’ WR depth chart.

The talk of spring ball was that Thornton was working hard to take over a leadership role in the receiving room. That was an important development as the team worked to welcome a new coaching staff and get the early weeks of the quarterback competition off the ground.

[lawrence-related id=28104]

Over the summer months, it doesn’t seem like much has changed.

”Dont’e has put in a lot of work this summer, and he’s making plays,” said Oregon’s WR coach Junior Adams. “Dont’e is one of those guys that literally lives in the receiver room, like, every time I’m coming in there, he’s sitting at the computer and he’s watching something.”

While showing up and working on the field would sometimes be enough in a normal year, this is by no means a normal year for the Ducks. An entirely new coaching staff and offensive scheme is now being implemented, leaving the players with pages and pages of install to memorize forward and backward before the start of the season rolls around.

[lawrence-related id=27859]

Though offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham’s scheme is complex, the offensive coaches said on Tuesday that they feel the team is starting to feel comfortable with it. Thornton is certainly helping that process.

”He’s the guy that night before a practice or a meeting the next day, he’s the one that’s texting the group like ‘Hey, can we get the install for tomorrow?’” Adams said. “He’s one of those types of guys, so I enjoy being around Dont’e, he’s a great kid.”

The Ducks have an incredibly deep — although inexperienced — WR corps with 11 former 4-star recruits. Competition for targets will be tight, but with the work that Thornton has been putting in this off-season, he’s sure to be near the top of the pecking order.

[mm-video type=playlist id=01f27mq9z7hjgk6vc6 player_id=none image=https://duckswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

[listicle id=27998]

Ducks Wire Player of the Game: WR Dont’e Thorton steals the show

Dont’e Thornton’s 116 yards and two-touchdown performance earned him our MVP nod for the Spring Game.

[jwplayer EadSMBst]

Oregon’s receiving corps is very talented and very deep. The only thing they are lacking is experience.

During this spring camp, new head coach Dan Lanning was looking for someone in that group to step up in a leadership role on and off the field. According to several people in the know, that player turned out to be sophomore Dont’e Thornton.

The 6-foot-5, 200-pounder was the logical choice to be that guy to step up after making a leap in the Alamo Bowl last season. Thornton proved that wasn’t some fluke and showed how much he has improved with a stellar Spring Game.

[lawrence-related id=23256]

Although he caught just three passes, Thornton led the team with 116 yards and two touchdowns, one for 39 yards, the other for 70 yards. He showed that he can be that deep threat Oregon has been lacking for quite some time.

There were a number of candidates for our Ducks Wire Player of the Game award on Saturday. Seven McGee also accumulated 116 yards receiving and a TD, while Chase Cota was able to finish up with an even 100 yards on some impressive catches. Over on the defensive side of the ball, DJ Johnson was an absolute monster, racking up 7 total tackles, 5 TFL, and 4 sacks, while Trikweze Bridges had a 42-yard pick-six to open the second half.

In the end, though, there was no player who quite impressed us as much as Thornton did. In a stacked WR room, it looks like he might have the ability to stand apart. Let’s hope this is the first of many DWPOG awards he sees.

Contact/Follow us @Ducks_Wire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oregon Ducks news, notes, and opinion.

Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

[mm-video type=video id=01g1cfbnjdxsmpy98gjx playlist_id=01f27mq9z7hjgk6vc6 player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g1cfbnjdxsmpy98gjx/01g1cfbnjdxsmpy98gjx-373bb3faf08ebbb04b2907690d13002e.jpg]

[listicle id=23305]

Highlights: Ducks’ offense flies under new Oregon offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham

Did you miss the Ducks’ spring game? We’ve got all of your highlights right here. Settle in, there are a lot.

From the very start of the game, Oregon Duck fans had to know that they were in for quite a show.

With Bo Nix and the yellow team on the field to kick off the annual spring game, things started with a bang as Seven McGee hauled in a 70-yard pass on the first play from scrimmage, leaving the crowd in a frenzy.

A couple of plays later, McGee had a nice one-handed TD grab that kick off the scoring, and the Ducks were off to the races.

We knew that the offense that Kenny Dillingham was bringing to Oregon was going to be more explosve than we’ve seen under previous coaches, but until Saturday, it was hard to know just what we were in for.

After a 31-21 final in the spring game, plus 611 yards of total offense on the day, fans should now have good idea of just what the Ducks are going to be able to do on that side of the ball this year.

If you missed the game, here are some of the highlights that took place throughout the day:

Bo Nix, Seven McGee and Chase Cota all impress in Oregon’s spring game

The offense was the story at Oregon’s spring game, with Bo Nix, Seven McGee, and Chase Cota leaving big impressions.

[jwplayer EadSMBst]

It didn’t take long for Bo Nix to proclaim that he’s at Oregon for a reason and it’s not to hold a clipboard on the sideline.

With the first play of the game, Nix signaled he means business in the competition to be the starter heading into fall camp with a perfect throw to Seven McGee on a crossing route for a cool 70 yards. Nix found McGee a couple of plays later for a five-yard touchdown and the Yellow Team was already rolling.

In the end, it was a fun day had by all as an estimated 42,000 Oregon fans came out to watch the Ducks on a sunny day at Autzen Stadium.

Officially, the Yellow Team defeated the Green Team 31-21, but the final score doesn’t matter on this day. What Oregon fans and players alike will remember from this day is seeing their favorite stars from the past, present, and future.

Arik Armstead, De’Anthony Thomas, LaMichael James, and Haloti Ngata were on the sidelines calling plays in the fourth quarter as well several notable past Ducks in the stands.

Nix threw for 230 yards and three touchdowns and after a slow start, Ty Thompson had a nice day with 168 yards through the air and a score. Dont’e Thornton caught three passes for 116 receiving yards and a touchdown and while Chase Cota didn’t find the end zone, he had six catches for 100 yards.

The transfer from UCLA and the son of an Oregon legend, Cota showed what kind of season he’s primed to have in 2022. He was open all day and the Duck quarterbacks, mainly Thompson, found him.

In the first half, yellow scored again to make it 14-0 and this was when Thompson began to settle down and make plays. He found Kris Hutson for a 40-yard completion to set up a seven-yard touchdown pass to Troy Franklin.

Quarterback Jay Butterfield made his presence known early in the second quarter with a 36-yard pass that found Josh Delgado in the right corner of the end zone to tie the game 14-14. Butterfield finished the game 263 yards playing for both teams.

Green was up 21-14 thanks to transfer running back Noah Whittington’s 47-yard touchdown run down the right side that the offensive line sealed off the defense and left a running lane open.

Whittington led all rushers with 84 yards. Sean Dollars added 49 yards on nine carries. Byron Cardwell was held out of the game for precautionary reasons. The only in-game injury scare came when Jackson Powers-Johnson was rolled up from behind after a play. According to Lanning, both players are fine.

“Yeah, it was precautionary there with Byron. With JPJ, it looks like he’s gonna be okay,” he said. “We’re gonna continue to get the medical professionals evaluation on it but it sounds like he’s okay. I got to see him right there in the locker room after.”

Yellow’s defense made an impact early in the third quarter on Twikweze Bridges Pick-6 where the corner took the ball away from the intended receiver and followed a convoy of yellow jerseys before spinning his way into the end zone.

Nix ended his day just as he began it … with a bang. His last pass was a 70-yard strike to Thornton midway through the fourth quarter.

Contact/Follow us @Ducks_Wire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oregon Ducks news, notes, and opinion.

Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

[mm-video type=video id=01g1afztn0p9jvvevfps playlist_id=01f27mq9z7hjgk6vc6 player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g1afztn0p9jvvevfps/01g1afztn0p9jvvevfps-94362e3d7206f80155777dbc0906d027.jpg]

[vertical-gallery id=23293]