Is Oregon’s NIL and Recruiting Ahead of Everyone?

[FishDuck Article]

Oregon is getting beat on the recruiting trail pretty badly this off-season. It’s been ages since the program has had a major win. It appears that Dan Lanning and Oregon’s main NIL cooperative, Division Street, may be changing their strategy, with a greater focus on spending NIL dollars in the transfer portal rather than on high school recruits. Mr. FishDuck ...

 

Is Oregon’s NIL and Recruiting Ahead of Everyone? | FishDuck

FISHDUCK.COM

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Oregon is getting beat on the recruiting trail pretty badly this off-season. It’s been ages since the program has had a major win. It appears that...

[Smith72]

I think you hit the proverbial NAIL on the head!  Why spend millions on unproven talent?  The transfer portal has given athletes the chance to be truly rewarded for their skills, and the freedom to go where that is possible.

 

Thank you David for today's article!  It is "right on".

[Steven A]

Here is some good use

 

Oregon football QB Dante Moore makes $10,000 donation to former high school with NIL funds

DUCKSWIRE.USATODAY.COM

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Oregon Ducks quarterback Dante Moore reportedly made a large donation to his former high school in Detroit.

 

[Jon Joseph]

 

Thank you, David, for a terrific, balanced look at today's world of recruiting. As Ohio State evidenced last season, it's also important to have money on hand to keep quality players on board for one more season. NIL is influencing decisions on whether to leave early for the NFL. 

 

Meanwhile, the Spendthrift Portal King did not take 'sure roster thing' Mississippi to the playoffs—Ditto for Norvell at FSU, whose incoming portal class was lauded at the start of the season. 

 

And then there are the spend like there's no tomorrow MIA Hurricanes. Cam could not do what NIL-trailblazer $cam did at Auburn. (SIGH)

 

Thanks again. Let's see where things stand after signing days for recruits and the portal.

[David Marsh]

Couple other things of note... I wrote this article a couple weeks ago so things have changed slightly or just proven my point the more. 

 

Brandon Arrington jr (a highly sought after CB in the 2026 cycle) is considered a TAMU lean because their offer on the table is so much larger than what Oregon is willing to pay. 

 

Some school's NIL program is still using blunt force (aka just outbid everyone) to recruit. Oregon hasn't and isn't playing that game. 

 

But as we saw with Dante Moore ... That doesn't mean we can't catch some of these players on the rebound. What if they don't have the season they dreamed of at their chosen school? They might be coming to Oregon after all. 

[David Marsh]

On 6/19/2025 at 7:47 AM, Jon Joseph said:

Meanwhile, the Spendthrift Portal King did not take 'sure roster thing' Mississippi to the playoffs—Ditto for Norvell at FSU, whose incoming portal class was lauded at the start of the season. 

Yes... He who shall not be named does use the portal in a way that differs greatly from Oregon. The portal in bulk approach that Kiffin at Ole Miss kinda uses as well. 

 

I would say the portal bulk approach is there because they are searching for overlooked diamonds in the portal. There are some absolutely... Benson was fantastic at FSU but didn't emerge at Oregon. 

 

But Lanning has something that few teams do... The ability to pick the top talent from the portal and land them consistently. Often taking the BEST players from other teams and treating them like feeder schools. 

 

We don't know how all this NIL stuff is going to playout in the near future as the House Settlement is still proceeding. But what's clear is that Oregon isn't going to overspend on high school recruits when they can dominate the portal.