Familiar Face Battling Oregon For 4-Star Recruit Hayden Stepp

The Oregon Ducks are one of four finalists for class of 2027 recruit, cornerback Hayden Stepp. They are in a recruiting battle with the Alabama Crimson Tide, California Golden Bears, and Georgia Bulldogs.

Hayden Stepp Narrowing Down Commitment Decision

oregon ducks dan lanning california golden bears tosh lupoi official visit georgia bulldogs alabama recruit hayden stepp — Georgia head coach Kirby Smart and Oregon head coach Dan Lanning meet during warm ups before the start of the Chick-fil-A Kickoff NCAA college football game between Oregon and Georgia in Atlanta, on Saturday, Sept. 3, 2022. News Joshua L Jones | Joshua L. Jones / USA TODAY NETWORK

Hayden Stepp is a 6-3, 185 pound cornerback out of Las Vegas, Nevada. He is rated as a four-star recruit and ranked as the No. 6 cornerback in the 2027 class according to 247Sports. Stepp posted on Instagram in April that his four finalists for his commitment are Oregon, Alabama, Cal, and Georgia.

Tom Loy of 247Sports recently gave an update on Stepp’s recruitment, citing 247Sports’ west coast college football recruiting analyst Blair Angulo.

Angulo says that it feels like Oregon and Alabama have the upper hand on Cal and Georgia, but the the Golden Bears and Bulldogs each have upcoming official visits with Stepp on that could help turn the tide. Cal will host on June 15 and Georgia on June 19.

Before Stepp visits those two, he will first be in Eugene for his Oregon official visit this weekend. His official visit with Alabama was back on May 29.

Alabama and Georgia are normal customers when it comes to being in recruiting battles for elite prospects. The same hasn't been true for Cal. However, the Golden Bears now have a familiar face for Oregon fans running the show in Berkeley.

During the offseason, Cal hired Oregon defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi to be their next head coach. Lupoi was on Oregon coach Dan Lanning's staff since Lanning's first season in Eugene back in 2022.

Lanning and Lupoi now find themselves going against each other for high-end recruits. Lupoi is getting the ball rolling for Cal already, as the Golden Bears have the No. 21 ranked 2027 recruiting class in the country per Rivals. Cal has not had a top 50 ranked class since 2021.

High School Connection

In nine games as a junior for Bishop Gorman High School in 2025-26, Stepp had 24 total tackles and four passes defended. Stepp wouldn’t be the first defensive back out of Bishop Gorman to commit to Oregon.

Bishop Gorman class of 2026 recruit, safety Jett Washington signed with the Ducks this past recruiting cycle. The Ducks hope that Stepp’s high school teammate can play a role to help land him.

Washington is a 6-5, 215 pound safety rated as a five-star recruit. He is ranked by 247Sports as the No. 1 safety in the 2026 class. If Stepp ends up signing with the Ducks, it’s very possible the Oregon secondary a couple years from now will be led by these two Bishop Gorman teammates.

Oregon Ducks’ 2027 Recruiting Class

The Oregon Ducks 2027 recruiting class is ranked No. 9 in the country by Rivals. It is ranked No. 3 in the Big Ten behind the Ohio State Buckeyes and USC Trojans. This class currently consists of 17 commits, 11 being blue chips (rated four or five stars).

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