Oregon Football: Grading the Ducks 2019 recruiting class
The Oregon Ducks will have Justin Herbert back in 2019, but which newcomers will be joining him and how good is their 2019 recruiting class.
Mario Cristobal’s first full year as the head coach of the Oregon Ducks was a bit all over the place, but ultimately a little disappointing. In a down year for the Pac-12, the Ducks wen just 5-4 in conference play after going unbeaten in non-conference games, leaving them sitting at just 9-4 at the end of the season. However, the hope is that better things are ahead.
The big thing for Oregon heading into 2019 is that quarterback Justin Herbert will be back for the new season. He could’ve gone to the NFL Draft, but instead will be staying in Eugene for one more season, a huge boost for the Ducks offense. Also giving this team a boost will be a strong 2019 recruiting class.
At the top of their 2019 class is, without question, weakside defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux from Oaks Christian in California. Thibodeaux is the No. 2 overall player in the 2019 class and adding him to a defense that was lacking should be a huge help for this team, and the youngster should see the field plenty as a freshman on this team given his talent and the unit he’s joining.
Beyond that, though, the Ducks also have four other top-100 recruits heading to Eugene, helping out both sides of the ball. Cornerback Mykael Wright (No. 41 overall) and inside linebacker Mase Funa (No. 68 overall) will join Thibodeaux in forming the building blocks of a strong future defense.
Meanwhile, the offense will add tackle Jonah Tauanu’u (No. 63 overall) and receiver Mycah Pittman (No. 94 overall) that will give Herbert and any future players some artillery and help around them.
After seeing that, let’s take a look at the 2019 Oregon recruiting class and hand out a grade to the Ducks.
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Having a top 10 recruiting class in the country is where Oregon should be given the perks of playing in Eugene, so definite kudos to Cristobal for bringing in a strong group that fits that bill. They aren’t close to being the best class in the country, but this is a strong group that could help the Ducks make noise moving forward in the Pac-12.
Grade: A-