Oregon football: Ducks sign elite 4-star CB Avante Dickerson
By John Buhler
The Oregon football team got better on Wednesday by signing four-star Avante Dickerson.
Mario Cristobal’s Oregon football program is the crown jewel in the Pacific Northwest. The Ducks are recruiting at an incredible national level, most recently illustrated by cornerback Avante Dickerson taking his four-star commitment from Omaha, Nebraska to Eugene, Oregon.
According to the 247Sports Composite, Dickerson is the No. 1 player from Nebraska, the No. 8 cornerback in his class and the No. 122 overall player in the 2021 cycle. He had originally committed to play for P.J. Fleck’s Minnesota Golden Gophers back April 2020. However, Dickerson decommitted about a week ago before re-opening his commitment ahead of National Signing Day.
Has Oregon recruited well enough to get back to the College Football Playoff?
Though the USC Trojans remain down, relatively speaking, Oregon has enough national intrigue to make the College Football Playoff for the first time in seven years, assuming the Ducks go 11-1 or 12-0 next season. Cristobal has earned his place among the best head coaches in the Power 5, both as a recruiter and as a program builder. However, the Pac-12’s reputation is still an issue.
Oregon and the Pac-12 will not get the benefit of the doubt unless its conference champion navigates a perfect season. Even with one loss, a one loss Big Ten or Big 12 champion would get in over them. With that in mind, Oregon has separated itself from the rest of the West Coast in terms of high-level recruiting. If the Ducks keep landing more guys like Dickerson, they can take flight.
By landing the best player out of Nebraska in Dickerson, Oregon is recruiting at an elite level.
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