Even with Makhi Hughes miss, Ducks track record in the portal is DOMINATING

Though it was a mild shock when Dan Lanning announced Wednesday that Makhi Hughes had asked to redshirt for the remainder of the season after being the No. 1 back in the Transfer Portal over the offseason, it only points out what a spectacular success the Oregon staff has created scouting, recruiting and developing transfer players.

In the double overtime 30-24 win over Penn State, transfer players played big roles. Oregon couldn't have won without Dante Moore, Alex Harkey, Bear Alexander, Dillon Thieneman, Emmanuel Pregnon, Gary Bryant Jr., Jamari Johnson and Jadon Canaday.

Things haven't worked out with Hughes, expected to be the Ducks' next thousand-yard rusher coming out of spring practice. But over Lanning's four transfer classes the staff has hit big in the portal at a rate few teams can match.

Oregon's last three quarterbacks were recruited out of the portal, Bo Nix, Dillon Gabriel and Dante Moore were all found there and each found tremendous success operating the Oregon offense. All three were damaged in some way coming in, on the scrap heap, getting too much blame as quarterbacks do when a team falls short of expectations.

Nix and Gabriel blossomed as Heisman finalists as Duck QBs, both setting NCAA records. The Denver Broncos took Nix in the first round and signed him to a four-year, 18.6 million contract that included a $10.36 million signing bonus. The Browns took Gabriel in the third.

Nix would have been a late-round or UDFA coming out of Auburn. With the Sooners, there was noise that Gabriel might be passed over for highly touted freshman Jackson Arnold. Instead, he led Oregon to a 13-1 season and a Big Ten Championship.

"The big story is the hit rate," Josh Pate said, citing the Ducks' beating Penn State with three starters from the portal on the offensive line, no sacks and 176 yards rushing, no penalties for false start, illegal procedure from A'lique Terry's unit.

"Oregon went to the portal and IMMEDIATELY fortified a national championship contending team."

This year the Ducks are 5-0 and Dante Moore is a Heisman favorite, a completely different quarterback than he was at UCLA as a true freshman.

Oregon's winning formula in the portal (scouting, evaluation, recruiting, fit and development) doesn't stop with QBs. Christian Gonzalez, Derrick Harmon, Bucky Irving, Ajani Cornelius, Jordan Burch, Tez Johnson, Traeshon Holden and Evan Stewart all came out of the portal and played big roles for the Ducks.

The powerful combination of great high school recruiting and judicious use of the portal has catapulted the program to college football's longest regular season winning streak and longest home winning streak, with an 87 percent chance to make the playoffs.

The Ducks swung and missed on Hughes, but they're mashing three-run homers all through the rest of the lineup, playing at a playoff level. In Thieneman, they have the ball hawking safety they needed to lead a young secondary, a playmaker whose standard of preparation has elevated his whole unit.

Harkey has shown himself to be the road grader Oregon needed in the run game, punching guys out or pancaking them to ignite big gains and touchdowns.

He gets two ion one play on this go-ahead touchdown.

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