Gauging Oregon's interest in the 7 most intriguing names in the transfer portal

According to Rivals.com, 3600 players have entered the transfer portal for 2024-2025, and the number is rising every few minutes.

Oregon isn't likely to be a big player in the spring transfer portal, which opened Wednesday and closes on April 26th. The Ducks are at 83-87 scholarships right now with a deep and balanced roster.

Any moves they make would most likely be in the general category of one-for-one. That is, if they lose a player at cornerback, receiver or running back, they'd look for a fit in the portal at the same position, a depth player, a guy who fits a well-defined culture.

The one possible exception is at linebacker. The Ducks have two experienced starters in Bryce Boettcher and Devon Jackson, but behind them are a bevy of promising young players (Kamar Mothudi, Brayden Platt, Dylan Williams, Gavin Nix, Jerry Mixon) without much experience.

Oregon lost Jeffrey Bassa, Jestin Jacobs and Connor Soelle to graduation. You could see the Ducks moving to pick up an impact guy at this position, a special teams menace like Soelle, or a veteran with experience.

Trouble is, not many high-quality linebackers hit the portal. What's out there at this juncture fall into the category of reclamation projects, underachievers and depth chart casualties, the disgruntled and the deluded.

There's been more movement at other positions, including some high-profile entries and former coveted recruits. Here are few names to note, keeping in mind there are new announcements every few minutes:

Nico Iamaleava, Tennessee quarterback

Iamaleava officially entered the portal Wednesday with a do not contact tag, meaning he's probably nearing a deal with a school that hasn't been announced yet. He's been talking to Tulane and UCLA (close to his family home in Long Beach, Calif) but the offers for him fall far less than the $4 million his camp originally sought.

Last season the 6-6, 215-pound dual-threat quarterback passed for 2,616 yards and 19 touchdowns while rushing for 358 yards and three more TDs.

Oregon interest: Zero

The Ducks are confident in the progress and potential of Dante Moore and Austin Novosad, and they don't see Iamaleava as an upgrade, particularly with the disruption that would cause and the lack of a fit in football culture.

Any team that brings him in at this date faces a challenge in getting him acclimated to their system and in dealing with the upheaval his addition creates in their football marketplace. Suddenly the edge rusher wants to negotiate his deal, and the No. 2 quarterback is reaching out to the schools that didn't get Iamaleava.

Iamaleava's loud, ugly exit from UT, with charges he threatened to opt out of the playoff game, missing practice and sitting out the spring game, dampened his market value and evaluation.

Jaydn Ott, Cal running back

Ott was intriguing for half a second because he is a former Oregon commit who led the PAC-12 in rushing in 2023 with 1,315 yards and 12 touchdowns, injured last year.

A graduate transfer, he quickly signed with Oklahoma on Tuesday, giving the Sooners a potential dream backfield of PAC-12 refugees in Ott and Washington State quarterback John Mateer. It will be interesting to see how that works out in the SEC.

Four Cal running backs entered the portal yesterday, including former Oregon Duck Byron Cardwell. At West Virginia University new coach Rich Rodriguez is purging and overhauling the roster. Already 30 Mountaineers have entered the portal.

Oregon interest: Moot

Ott was never interested in coming home to the Ducks and already zeroed in on the OU offer.

Oregon is STACKED at running back and isn't likely to look to the portal for an upgrade beyond Hughes, Whittington, Jay Harris, Dink Riggs and Jayden Limar, let alone promising freshman Dierre HIll and Jordan Davison, who are already practicing.

Even if one or two of these guys decide to enter the portal in search of playing time, Oregon isn't in the running back market, particularly.

Branson Robinson, Georgia running back

Robinson is listed because he's an interesting TYPE. The 5-10, 220-pound sophomore from Canton, Mississippi is powerful. He squats 630 pounds and bench presses 415 pounds, a four four-star with a 40-inch vertical leap and a 4.49 40.

Oregon interest: Nil, Nada, Zilch

The Ducks have a whole ROOM of physical runners with explosiveness, but for diehard college football fans it will be interesting to watch whether Robinson can resurrect his flagging career. He carried the ball six times for 42 yards and two touchdowns in the 2022-23 National Championship win over TCU, injured for all of 2023.

Micah Hudson

A five-star recruit in the 2024 class, the mercurial Hudson caught 8 passes for the Red Raiders in 2024, transferred to Texas A&M in December and is now back in the portal.

As a senior at Lake Belton High in Temple, Texas, Hudson caught 70 passes for 1,370 yards and 18 TDs on 19.6 yards per catch, but all potential means is that you haven't done anything yet.

Adrian Wilson, Colorado wide receiver

A four-star recruit from Weiss High School in Texas, Wilson recorded 47 receptions for 985 and 14 touchdowns to help lead Weiss to the Texas 5A playoffs. Rivals ranked him as the No. 174 prospect in 2024 and the No. 30 wide receiver, 6-2, 165.

He's a distant cousin of Whitney Houston, and as a hobby he likes to design his own cleats for games.

Oregon interest: Maybe a flyer if there's an exodus

The shoe-design connection makes it seem superficially like a can't-miss, but the Ducks are not truly a fit for him unless he makes huge strides in the performance lab and the weight room. He should find a new home in the portal, but not in Eugene.

Decoldest “ToEvadoit” Crawford, Louisiana Tech wide receiver

The most intriguing NAME in the portal is Crawford, who caught two passes for 17 yards as a redshirt freshman in 2023.

Oregon interest: Electron Microscopic

Decoldest gets bonus points for self-promotion and chutzpah, but he is not a major college prospect.

Read More: