Oregon Football: Elite Recruits from the South That Chip Kelly Must Land

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So last week was not a good one from the Ducks' recruiting perspective.

Highly sought after 5-star DT Eddie Vanderdoes verbally committed to USC, right after equally sought after 4-star OT Nico Falah did the same thing.

Falah's commitment to the Trojans was particularly painful to fans since he had tweeted two days previously "Win the Day," passed on to you by me as a hopeful sign.

Outsmarted by a 17-year-old. How embarrassing.

But life goes on. There are plenty of other 17-year-olds in the sea.

Many of the hot prospects are in the South this year. For Oregon to join the ranks of the true national powers in college football, the Ducks need to reel in some of these Southern recruits. Here are the ones I'd like to see Chip Kelly land.

Vernon Hargreaves III

Rivals.com

Five-star cornerback Vernon Hargreaves III had some bad luck at Nike's The Opening: He rolled his ankle the first day and was invisible for most of the weekend.

Doesn't matter. Hargreaves was born to play cornerback, and he is the No. 1-rated CB in the nation.

Unfortunately, VHIII visited USC last week and was impressed. He's also visited Stanford, and has visits planned to just about every school worth going to: Ohio State, Notre Dame, ad nauseum.

Hargreaves visited Oregon after The Opening and before going to Stanford and USC. He tweeted that Oregon facilities were "unbelievable" and "the best in the country." Two days later, Hargreaves said that USC was his leader.

Complicating matters is that Hargreaves' father is an assistant coach at USF, who has also offered. Hargreaves is not in a hurry to verbally commit; he plans to take his official visits next fall and says he won't decide until then.

USC may be in the lead for now, but it's a long time till mornin' on VHIII.

 

 

 

Torrodney Prevot

espn.go.com

Prevot, a 4-star defensive end from Houston, TX, has more than 20 offers to sift through. He doesn't seem to be in a hurry to commit, and will take official visits well into the fall.

Prevot's visit to Oregon will come on Oct. 5 and he will visit USC on Nov. 4 (yes, THAT weekend).

It's thought that Prevot's top three schools are Texas, LSU and Texas A&M, but he has indicated he wants to see how teams do this year. Isn't that smart?

If Oregon whomps on Washington the weekend Prevot is in Eugene, and then the Ducks take care of you-know-who on Nov. 3, the chances with Prevot would definitely improve.

 

Ricky Seals-Jones

rantsports.com

What you can't see in this photo of mega-recruit Ricky Seals-Jones is the "Hook 'em, Horns" sign he is giving with his right hand...because I have deftly edited it out.

Just like RSJ (that's his nom de plume on the recruiting trail) edited out the University of Texas in June from his previous verbal commitment.

The 5-star No. 1 rated wide receiver is said to still be considering Texas. But he has reopened his search and in addition to Texas, now has Baylor, LSU, Texas A&M and, wait for it, Oregon on his "high interest" list.

The 6'5", 220 lb. WR from Sealy, Texas, would be a major get for Oregon.

 

Wyatt Teller

Rivals.com

With last week's loss of 5-star DT Eddie Vanderdoes to the Trojans, I would think Oregon would be stepping up its efforts on Wyatt Teller.

The 6'5", 255 lbs Teller is a 4-star DT from Bealeton, Virginia. He is said to be leaning towards staying in state with either Virginia or Virginia Tech, but Oregon, Clemson and Michigan round out his top five.

The word on Teller is that he plays hard and would be an immediate impact player for whoever he chooses. His stock has been on the rise of late.

I don't know if he has an official visit to Oregon scheduled yet, but will let you know when I know anything.

Others

Antonio Conner espn.go.com

Five-star safety Antonio Conner still has Oregon on his list, but he has said that he is basically looking at schools in the SEC.

How shallow.

Also, linebacker Mike Mitchell has an offer from Oregon, but the Ducks aren't on his list currently. The 4-star from Plano, Texas is a good prospect, so I will keep my eye on him until he commits.

It will be huge if Oregon can land any of these Southern superstars.

Stay tuned.