Oregon Ducks Trending For Elite Quarterback Recruit Ryder Lyons Over USC Trojans

The USC Trojans have been the longtime favorites for 2026 five-star quarterback Ryder Lyons. USC signed his brother, tight end Walker Lyons, out of high school during the 2023 recruiting cycle and USC coach Lincoln Riley been courting the younger Lyons brother since.

However, the Oregon Ducks have been making an all-or-nothing effort in hopes of luring the California native away from the Trojans. The Ducks' efforts have began to pay off as they have predicted as the future landing spot for Lyons by Steve Wiltfong of On3.

The Ducks lost out on five-star quarterback Jared Curtis to the Georgia Bulldogs, a potential explanation for Wiltfong's prediction of Lyons to Oregon.

St. Bonaventure's Dylan Dunst tackles Folsom quarterback Ryder Lyons during the fourth quarter of the CIF-State Division 1-A state championship bowl at Saddleback College in Mission Viejo on Saturday, Dec. 9, 2023. St. Bonaventure lost 20-14. | JOE LUMAYA/SPECIAL TO THE STAR / USA TODAY NETWORK

Despite holding multiple predictions in favor of Lyons early on during his recruitment, the Trojans never got the commitment they were searching for. Even with his brother on the team and after reeling in his teammate, three-star offensive tackle Vlad Dyakonov, Lyons has not pledged to the Trojans.

With 2026 four-star quarterback Jonas Williams flipping from the Ducks to the Trojans in February, it threw a wrench into Lyons' potential plans to commit to USC, and it gave the Ducks a chance to make leeway in their pursuit of him.

Wiltfong broke down his decision to move his prediction from the Trojans to the Ducks and said that the Trojans have been overlapped not only by Oregon, but BYU as well.

"My On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine expert pick had been on USC since the fall for Lyons when it looked like he was close to committing to the Trojans. Now, the intel is starting to favor Oregon. BYU looks to be second in the battle for Lyons currently. While Lyons could certainly end up with BYU, and that will be something to monitor, I’m going to move my predictions for Lyons to the Ducks," Wiltfong said.

On3's RPM has the Ducks with a 52.5 percent chance of landing the four-star quarterback from Folsom.

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Nov 18, 2023; Los Angeles, California, USA; USC Trojans head coach Lincoln Riley during the first quarter at United Airlines Field at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images | Jason Parkhurst-Imagn Images

Lyons is one of the most interesting prospects in a long time due to the fashion of his recruitment. Similarly to former five-star recruit and Stanford quarterback Tanner McKee, Lyons will be taking a multi-yearlong mission and will enter college as a 2028 recruit despite graduating as a member of the 2026 class.

Regardless of who lands the talented gunslinger, they won't be getting him for at least a couple of seasons, which makes teams, like USC, hesitant to take just a singular quarterback because of Lyons' delayed enrollment.

Greg Biggins of 247Sports said that Lyons could be the best quarterback from the 2026 recruiting cycle when it's all said and done.

"Lyons is on the short list when talking about the top overall signal caller in the ’26 class. He's coming off a huge sophomore season where he showed off his rare ability as a thrower and runner and accounted for 61 all-purpose touchdowns...combines rare physical tools with an advanced feel for the position as well," Biggins said.

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