Oregon Duck fans woke up to the unfortunate news on Thursday morning that one of the best players in their 2025 signing class, 5-star wide receiver Dallas Wilson, was requesting to be released from his papers and leave the school.
Wilson, who is rated as the No. 20 overall player and No. 3 WR in the 2025 class, signed with Oregon earlier this month on National Signing Day after being the longest-tenured commit in Oregon’s class, giving his verbal back in January of 2023.
There were bumps along the road, with rumors swirling that Wilson would flip to the Florida Gators in the late hours before signing day began. In the end, Wilson did end up pulling the rip-cord, and will likely end up with the Gators now.
So what does this mean for the Ducks? That’s the only question that matters now. Let’s dive in.
Where the 2025 Recruiting Class Stands
Before the news broke about Wilson, Oregon had the No. 2 ranked recruiting class in the 2025 cycle, sitting behind only the Texas Longhorns. With the loss of the 5-star, the Ducks saw their ranking slide down to No. 5 in the nation.
Still pretty great, considering.
There aren’t many teams in the nation that could withstand the loss of the No. 3 WR in the class and still be set up for success, but Oregon was uniquely positioned to do so. The Ducks signed 5-star WR Dakorien Moore in this cycle, the No. 1 WR in the nation and No. 4 overall player. They also have 4-star WR Cooper Perry signed in this class as well.
Oregon’s Current WR Outlook
In most cases, the loss of a true freshman might not have a significant impact on the depth chart, but when you’re talking about a player as talented as Wilson, it’s something to consider. There’s no telling how big of a role he was going to have in 2025, but it will be interesting to see how the Ducks treat the WR position now this offseason.
With the loss of Tez Johnson and Traeshon Holden, there was already a good chance that Oregon would try to find a receiver in the transfer portal, mainly dependent on the future of Evan Stewart, who is considering a return to Eugene for one more season. Does the loss of Wilson further increase the need to add a WR in the portal? It’s tough to say. If the Ducks were looking to add a receiver before getting this news, then nothing changes. If they were on the fence about it, then this might have pushed them into the “take” category.
Regardless, the Ducks have a lot of talent at the WR position, both young and old, and should be able to withstand this blow with ease in 2025.
Oregon’s Future WR Outlook
The biggest impact that Wilson’s departure will have is on the future of the WR room in Eugene, and once again, it’s hard to argue against the fact that the Ducks are uniquely positioned to withstand this. Under wide receivers coach Junior Adams, Oregon has recruited the WR position as well as anyone in the nation, and they have stocked the coffers for years to come out wide.
Not only do they have Dakorien Moore and Cooper Perry in this class, plus Jeremiah McClellan, Ryan Pellum, and Dillon Grisham from 2024 — all players ranked in the top 200 nationally — but fans often forget about the commitment of 5-star WR Gatlin Bair last year. The No. 27 player in the 2024 class is currently on an LDS mission and is set to join the program a year from now. Bair is considered one of the fastest players in the nation, holding a 10.15-second time in the 100 meters.
If you had the option of keeping Wilson or not, obviously you would want him on your team. However, the Ducks have recruited at WR as well, if not better than any team in the nation over the past few years, and they continually hit the transfer portal as well. By no means is this a death blow to the program.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3]