It didn’t take long after Chip Kelly‘s abrupt about-face for other schools to take aim at Oregon’s 2013 recruiting class. Specifically, USC and Ohio State were looking to poach several high-profile recruits from what many were looking upon as a lame duck, so to speak, recruiting class.
A week and a half away from National Signing Day, the Buckeyes are ratcheting up the pressure on new UO head coach Mark Helfrich‘s attempts to keep the class from tumbling even further into mediocrity.
UO’s 2013 class, which ranks anywhere between 25th and 36th depending on the recruiting service, contains verbal commitments from four out-of-state players who carry four-star rankings. Starting the day Kelly left for the NFL, Urban Meyer and his OSU coaching staff has gone hard after every single one of those four-star recruits. From The Oregonian‘s John Canzano:
Suffice to say, Urban Meyer (pictured) knows how to successfully navigate the recruiting trail -- his 2013 class is currently No. 2 according to 247Sports.com and Scout.com, No. 4 according to Rivals.com -- so there’s much concern about Helfrich’s ability to retain the upper-tier of what’s now his class.
As was the case the day of Kelly’s departure, though, it’s not all negative recruiting-wise for the Ducks as the crown jewel of UO’s class this year, five-star running back Thomas Tyner, is expected to follow through on his verbal commitment and sign with the Ducks early next month.
How many of his fellow high-profile commits follow suit, however, remains to be seen, especially with the dogged Meyer hot on their scent.