Elite transfer pickup for Oregon requests redshirt after minimal playing time

Makhi Hughes was the No. 1 running back in the transfer portal this offseason, and he brought his talents to Eugene to play for Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks.

Now, five games into the season and with one of the deepest running back rooms in the country, Hughes isn't seeing the playing time that everyone expected. As Oregon worked its way through the bye week, head coach Dan Lanning announced that the RB had requested a redshirt.

Through the first four games of the season, Hughes had just 17 carries for 70 yards and zero touchdowns. Meanwhile, the rest of the running back room combined for 138 carries, earning 886 yards and 14 touchdowns.

As a sophomore at Tulane, Hughes rushed for over 1,400 yards and found the end zone 15 times for the Green Wave last season. When he announced he was transferring to Oregon, many people expected his numbers to blossom behind an even more talented offensive line.

Simply put, the highly touted transfer RB wasn't looking all that highly touted in the Oregon locker room.

When game time in Week 5 came along, and the Ducks were preparing to take on the Penn State Nittany Lions, Hughes wasn't on the depth chart or in the stadium, staying in Eugene for Oregon's biggest game of the regular season.

Just four days after Oregon's massive victory over Penn State, Lanning shared the news that Hughes had requested to redshirt the remainder of the season.

Now, this doesn't necessarily mean that Hughes is planning to enter the portal once again and join another program. Players can request redshirts due to injury or simply because they aren't seeing enough playing time, opting to save their eligibility for another season.

Behind the combination of Dierre Hill Jr., Jayden Limar, Noah Whittington, and Jordon Davison, it would be nearly impossible for someone to argue that Hughes should have been any higher on the depth chart.

Only time will tell if Hughes' redshirt is granted, and what exactly he intends to do with the remainder of his collegiate eligibility.