On the eve of a visit to Eugene by the country's No. 1 recruit, national recruiting analyst Steve Wiltfong of On3 Sports has entered a prediction of Jackson Cantwell to Georgia.
While the early signing period isn't until December and predictions and verbal commitments aren't binding, Wiltfong has a well-established record for accuracy in the recruiting world. He seldom misses, although occasionally he misses spectacularly.
Dan Lanning is a dynamic recruiter that's brought a lot of success to Oregon, three straight classes ranked No. 5, No. 6 and No. 9 over the last three cycles.
Losing Kodi Greene to Washington this morning, coupled with the Cantwell news, it's a bit like trailing by two touchdowns late in the third quarter.
FONG BOMB: On3’s @SWiltfong_ has logged an expert prediction for Georgia to land No. 1 overall recruit Jackson Cantwell🐶
— On3 Recruits (@On3Recruits) April 24, 2025
Read: https://t.co/3H7bpu6nUw pic.twitter.com/6VQu3zqkoT
Wyatt Wheeler of the Springfield News-Leader has been covering the Cantwell story and his development as an athlete since the 6-8, 320 tackle was in middle school. In a story this morning he wrote:
"There's a good argument that Dan Lanning is my favorite coach I've met so far," Cantwell said. "He's a fantastic dude and a great ball coach. I like him a lot. I think (offensive line coach) A'lique Terry does a great job relating to the kids and does a great job of teaching."
What Jackson Cantwell has said about Oregon football
"It's very far away, but I think the reason why they have a lot of pull nationwide is just because they've won a lot of games. You know about the Oregon brand because of how big they are nationally. They're on television all the time, you can watch all their stuff, and they win a lot. It's a lot of fun to watch them."
Recruiting has been a funhouse rollercoaster long before NIL or the portal. In 1979 Texas A&M offered running back Eric Dickerson a briefcase with $50,000 and a gold Trans Am. The scale is different, but the frenzied pursuit of top athletes hasn't changed at all.
Recruiting is a rollercoaster and a crazy, scoop-driven space. Where a team is in April is not where they will be in July or December. A sound, relationship-driven, authentic approach has been the strength of the Oregon program through 3 Top 10 classes.
Cantwell, bright, thoughtful and gifted, will make his best decision over the next two weeks. He's scheduled to announce on May 13.