Oregon Ducks got 23 stars’ worth of commits during NFL draft weekend

Sometimes it takes a little bit to get a head of steam going in recruiting, and it looks like Willie Taggart’s Oregon is on the right track after a massive weekend featuring six commitments, five of whom are blue-chip prospects.

• Steve Stephens, four-star safety, (Fresno, California)
• Adrian Jackson, four-star LB, (Denver, Colorado)
• Isaiah Bolden, four-star CB, (Zephyrhills, Florida)
• Dawson Jaramillo, four-star OT, (Lake Oswego, Oregon)
• Jamal Elliott, four-star RB, (Durham, North Carolina)
• Spencer Webb, three-star TE, (Sacramento, California)

This shows, on a small level, that the Ducks are on the right track to recruit nationally. They also were able to keep one of the best players in the state at home. Jaramillo is the No. 4 player in Oregon. And most importantly, that Taggart’s ties to Florida aren’t something he’ll be sacrificing (Bolden flipped from Florida State).

But this is just the bearing of seeds Taggart sewed like the hire of Mario Cristobal, an ace recruiter, for his offensive coordinator. With the relative issues inherent to having a program based in Oregon, finding every discernible advantage to recruit nationally is key.

“I’m on the phone with this ‘18 kid in [a Southeastern state], and he’s telling me how he’s been an Oregon fan his entire life,” Cristobal says. “Loved Oregon. Or loves Oregon. Those are the guys we have to I.D. immediately. Those are the guys we have to lock in on and not let up.”

There’s a noticeable urgency. Just days released from four years in The Process, he’s anxious get Oregon caught up to the three-year advance cycle of evaluations programs like Alabama already have.

This haul also didn’t come out of nowhere, as Oregon had its spring game this weekend and spring games are often good recruiting events.

...the spring game is a HUGE recruiting tool for coaching staffs because it gives these kids a chance to experience a semi-real gameday atmosphere and because it allows the kids to see the team play, rather than just watching practice.

The spring game, like the team banquet, summer camps and its junior days are non-fall game days that are pretty big for a school’s recruiting calendar. Also remember that this was a weekend the NFL draft dominated the sports calendar, but the Ducks were still able to make their mark. But not all the commits that pledged to the Ducks were even on campus in Eugene on Saturday. It shows that Taggart & Co. don’t necessarily need a landmark event but it certainly helps.

Other NFL draft weekend stuff.

You know where the Bama players went in the draft. The UDFA news is still rolling in for the Tide.

Michigan’s cracked a 4-star’s top 10.

Ohio State might get a commitment from a four-star LB.

Always helps to have players drafted in terms of recruiting. Nebraska didn’t have any.