Oregon Continuing to Prioritize Two Names Along O-Line in 2024

There are ebbs and flows in recruiting. New names enter the mix with new offers, while other players are priority targets from the jump.

One of Oregon's top targets along the offensive line, Aiea (Hi.) Waipahu interior offensive lineman Preston Taumua, recently committed to Nebraska, electing to play his college football in Lincoln over Eugene.

So what happened?

The Ducks looked like the runaway favorites in his recruitment, but Nebraska made a late push and was able to land the top player in Hawaii for the 2024 cycle. Matt Rhule and his staff have done a great job on the trail, but I'm hearing that previous injury history made the Ducks hesitant in the end.

So while this may look like a miss on the surface, that’s not how I’m evaluating it. Dan Lanning and company have always taken a very calculated approach and the offensive line depth both on the roster and in their 2024 class lead me to believe it’s not a major need right now.

All that said, Taumua would’ve been a very nice addition to the class and given the Ducks a great option at center. I need to do a little more digging to see if Devin Brooks has some center to his game or if he’s viewed mainly as a guard.

With Taumua off the board, there are two names Oregon will continue pushing for.

First and foremost is Brandon Baker. The nation’s No. 1 offensive tackle out of Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei. I still feel good about my Oregon prediction, but Texas has also come on strong.

Baker will likely take his official visit to Oregon during the season if I had to guess and I really like the work A’lique Terry and Dan Lanning have done here.

They put any of Baker’s fears of being too comfortable in Eugene to rest and firmly sit in the driver’s seat. There’s still a ways to go here so they can’t get complacent.

The other player fans need to keep tabs on is Draper (Ut.) Corner Canyon offensive tackle Isaiah Garcia. He's working from a top four of Oregon, Utah, Stanford and USC.

The latest I’m hearing is that Oregon and Utah are the teams with the best shot—and maybe the Utes have the edge right now. Coming off back-to-back Pac-12 titles, I think they're a school with a ton of untapped potential on the recruiting trail.

Oregon coaches likely prefer Baker over Garcia, but they'll continue to recruit both players. Aside from that pair of players, I think Fox Crader will continue to be another top recruiting priority for Terry and company as they've held off strong pushes from other schools--so far.