Oregon
Checking in with the Oregon Ducks WR room ahead of the 2025 season
We are less than 50 days away from the start of the 2025 college football season, and fewer than two weeks stand between us and the beginning of the Oregon Ducks’ fall camp getting off the ground in Eugene. While coaches and players wrap up their final couple of offseason weeks, we’re ready to jump back into things and take a deep dive into what’s set to take place at Autzen Stadium this year.
The Ducks are coming off of an incredible season that saw a 12-0 regular season, a Big Ten Championship, and the No. 1 seed in the first-ever 12-team College Football Playoff. The offseason brought significant roster turnover as Oregon sent a program record 10 players into the 2025 NFL draft; however, those players have been replaced by a young yet incredibly talented group of players ready to uphold the standard in Eugene.
Will they be able to complete the job? Expectations are high, but it won’t be an easy task.
Over the next few weeks, many questions will be asked, and a significant number of them will be answered. Once we get a look at things during fall camp, we will be able to predict more accurately how things shape up. However, we already have our depth chart projections for offense and defense from spring. As we continue our preview of the 2025 season, leading up to the kick-off vs. Montana State on August 30, let’s take a deep dive, position by position.
Previous Position Previews
Now let’s take a closer look at the running backs as we prepare for fall camp.
Overall Oregon Ducks WR Check-In
There are numerous positions on Oregon’s roster where talent is abundant, but experience is lacking. That may be no more true than at the WR spot. After losing both Tez Johnson and Traeshon Holden to the NFL, the Ducks were expecting to go into the 2025 season with Evan Stewart leading a young group of pass-catchers into the new season.
Then Stewart suffered an offseason knee injury, putting his 2025 campaign in doubt. Now the Ducks will have to rely on a young group of players with a lot of talent, but very minimal game experience. That group contains high-upside guys like Dakorien Moore, Jeremiah McClellan, Jurrion Dickey, Justius Lowe, and Kyler Kasper, all of whom could be potential gamebreakers. At this point, however, we need to see it before we can accurately project just how good the Ducks’ WR room is going to be this season.
Departing Oregon Ducks Wide Receivers
Tez Johnson
Career Stats: 310 catches, 3,889 yards, 28 TD
Although he was at Oregon for just two seasons, Tez Johnson quickly became the heart and soul of the Oregon program. He had wanted to be a Duck for a long time, and when his adopted brother, Bo Nix, came to Eugene, Johnson followed. The Ducks are thankful he did just that. He turned from a possession receiver to WR1 in his senior season, where he flourished. In his time as a Duck, Johnson had 169 catches for 2,080 yards and 20 touchdowns.
Traeshon Holden
Career Stats: 128 catches, 1,740 yards, 18 TD
Holden turned into a solid No. 2 receiver in 2024 and had a career-high of 45 catches, 718 yards, and added five more touchdowns to his resume. As a big-bodied receiver, Holden was a great complement to both Troy Franklin and Tez Johnson during his time in Eugene.
Returning Oregon Ducks Wide Receivers
Evan Stewart (Injured)
Career Stats: 139 catches, 1,776 yards, 11 TD
Going into the 2025 season, Stewart was projected to be the No. 1 WR for Oregon and among the top pass-catchers in the nation. However, an offseason knee injury derailed that, and now there are questions about when he will return, if at all, this season. We will continue to monitor the recovery timeline, but it seems more likely than not that Stewart will take a medical redshirt this season and instead focus on returning to the field in 2026.
Justius Lowe
Career Stats: 21 catches, 201 yards, 1 TD
Lowe probably would have been a starter on most teams, but most teams didn’t have the receivers Oregon had last season. When he finally got his chance, Lowe delivered. He’ll have plenty of opportunities in 2025, as we expect his workload to be significantly heavier than in years past, especially with Stewart sidelined. If he can be a reliable receiver, it will only help out guys such as Dakorien Moore and Jeremiah McClellan to get into single coverage.
Jeremiah McClellan
Career Stats: 3 catches, 24 yards
McClellan was among the top receivers in the Class of 2024 and was mainly on the scout team last season. But in 2025, he should see the field regularly; that’s how highly the Oregon coaching staff thinks of him. At 6 feet and 190 pounds, he has the chance to develop into a dynamic player for the program. The only question is how quickly he achieves that.
Kyler Kasper
Career Stats: 4 catches, 26 yards
It seems as if Kasper has been in Eugene for a long time. He was just 17 when he saw the field for the first time. Now, as a redshirt junior, the 6-foot-6, 210-pounder should have a more prominent role within the offense. You can’t teach height at the receiver position.
Jurrion Dickey
Career Stats: 2 catches, 14 yards
Dickey came into the Oregon program as one of the top receivers in the Class of 2023, but injuries slowed his progress, and he has been unable to crack the depth chart so far in his career. But in 2025, Dickey has as good of an opportunity as ever to show why he was a 5-star recruit and become an offensive weapon for the Ducks.
Gary Bryant Jr.
Career Stats: 85 catches, 1099 yards, 11 TDs
Bryant returns for one more year in Eugene after being sidelined with an injury for the better part of the 2024 season. He will be a valuable veteran in the WR room, but it remains to be seen whether or not he will be able to establish a prominent role amidst all of the talent around him.
Dillon Gresham
Career Stats: None
Dillon Gresham was one of the few blue-chip receivers that Oregon brought in as a member of the 2024 class, and while he redshirted last year, he showed in the spring game how dynamic of a receiver he can be. It may be tough for him to earn a top spot in the offense, but he is one of the many promising, young pass-catchers on the roster.
Jack Ressler
Career Stats: None
Ressler was another member of Oregon’s 2024 class who redshirted as a freshman and will be looking to work his way up in the depth chart this season.
Incoming Oregon Ducks Wide Receivers
Dakorien Moore
Career Stats: None
Expectations are high for 5-star WR Dakorien Moore, who was the No. 1 rated receiver in the 2025 class and one of the top-ranked recruits in Oregon history. With Evan Stewart sidelined for the foreseeable future, some extra weight is being placed on the freshman’s shoulders to step up and be “the guy” in Oregon’s offense. That may be unfair to ask of a player with no college experience, but based on everything we’re hearing and what we saw at the spring game, he should be up to the task.
Malik Benson
Career Stats: 38 catches, 473 yards, 2 TD
With all the inexperience currently on the roster, it was smart to explore the transfer portal and secure a receiver like Malik Benson. He had a nice season for a poor Florida State team with 25 catches, 311 yards, and a touchdown. He’ll most likely be WR2 or WR3 behind Moore, and with a better quarterback and players around him, Benson’s numbers should rise dramatically.
Cooper Perry
Career Stats: None
Cooper Perry is a blue-chip player in the 2025 class who was rated as the No. 20 WR in the nation. He garnered a lot of positive attention this spring for his ability to make contested catches over the middle, but he will likely redshirt in 2025 before entering the mix in 2026.
Predicting Oregon Ducks Starting Wide Receivers
- Dakorien Moore
- Jeremiah McClellan
- Justius Lowe
The injury to Evan Stewart certainly threw a wrench in Oregon’s starting wide receiver plans this year. What was once envisioned as a trio of Stewart, Moore, and either Lowe or McClellan has now shifted. Moore, McClellan, and Lowe are the most likely candidates to take over as starters, all of whom have minimal to no experience in actual gameplay. Other guys like Jurrion Dickey, Kyler Kasper, Malik Benson, and Gary Bryant will likely get a lot of reps, but my best bet is that trio of guys at the top.
Overall Oregon Ducks WR Outlook
While the outlook for Oregon’s WR group is somewhat uncertain going into the 2025 season, there’s hope and a belief that the players on the roster will flourish with the opportunity and break out. If that’s the case, then the Ducks could easily have one of the best receiver groups in the nation going into the 2026 season. On top of that, the Ducks’ WR recruiting has remained elite under new receiver coach Ross Douglas, who has pulled in 4-star Jalen Lott (No. 33 nationally) and 4-star Messiah Hampton (No. 99 nationally) in this class. On top of that, the Ducks will finally bring in 5-star WR Gatlin Bair next year after his LDS mission comes to a close. Long story short, Oregon’s WR group is loaded with talent; we need to see it play out on the field.
Contact/Follow @Ducks_Wire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oregon Ducks news, notes, and opinions.
The Oregon Ducks are set for one of the biggest timelines of their recruiting cycle, as many top targets are nearing commitments. This time around, the Ducks have a ton of top targets still remaining on their board compared to past seasons, as the Ducks have eight total commitments at this time.
Oregon coach Dan Lanning and his staff still need to land a safety commitment, but three-star safety Elijah Butler out of Maryland recently included the Ducks in his final six schools.
Oregon Target Elijah Butler Makes Exciting Recruiting Announcement
Butler announced his top six schools ahead of a crucial part of his recruitment, according to a graphic by Leyton Roberts. The Ducks made the cut alongside the Maryland Terrapins, Virginia Tech Hokies, Auburn Tigers, Florida Gators, and the Alabama Crimson Tide. The talented prospect would be a great addition for any of these teams, as they could all use a safety prospect at this point in the recruiting timeline.
Butler is from the state of Maryland, which makes the Terrapins one to watch.
It is also worth noting that he has been labeled as one of the best players in the state of Maryland, as he currently ranks as the state’s No. 9 prospect, according to Rivals. This is important as the Terrapins have always made solid attempts to land their in-state stars, including last season when they landed one of the better players in the state’s history, Zion Elee.
As of now, the prospect hasn’t been predicted to land with any of these schools, which means it is likely still a tight race entering the official visit schedule. He has yet to schedule an official visit with all of the schools he has listed in his top six, as he is still missing three key official visits. Butler has scheduled official visits with Alabama, Auburn, and Florida, according to 247Sports. This means he still needs to set one with Oregon, Virginia Tech, and Maryland if he wants to take one to each school.
If the Ducks are able to get Butler on a visit, then they would likely be in a more favorable position to land his commitment, as it currently. seems they are one of the trailing teams from this list. It seems highly unlikely that the Ducks will gain his commitment unless they get him on an official visit, which is still possible at this point, as plenty of top prospects across the nation are still scheduling their official visits.
As of now, the Ducks have 27 prospects set to take an official visit, according to 247Sports. Among all of the prospects who have scheduled a visit thus far, only one of the players is listed as a safety. That player is a three-star target, Junior Tu’upo. This leads one to believe that the Ducks could try to get Butler on a visit, or at a minimum, pitch their program to the prospect from St Frances Academy.
Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram for the latest news.
Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow
BLUE RIVER, Ore. (KATU) — The founder of a former disaster relief nonprofit is being sued for allegedly diverting nearly $837,000 in donations and grants for personal gain.
Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield filed the lawsuit Thursday against the founder and executive director of Cascade Relief Team (CRT), Marcus Brooks. In the complaint, Rayfield calls CRT “a sham.”
Brooks is accused of stealing donations and government grants meant for disaster relief following wildfires and flooding in 2020, and using it for personal expenses including casino visits, travel, vehicles, and more.
CRT was founded in 2020 and was hired for cleanup and relief services following the Labor Day Wildfires that burned over 1 million acres across Oregon.
In Blue River, an unincorporated community in the McKenzie River Valley, the 2020 Holiday Farm Fire destroyed nearly 800 homes and burned more than 173,000 acres.
I am angry that my community was taken advantage of
Just months after the fire, long-time Blue River resident Melanie Stanley said CRT stepped in and promised help to the community.
“For us, it was…like a savior at that point,” Stanley said.
Stanley was the manager for the Blue River Resource Center and worked for Brooks to help facilitate recovery efforts. She said CRT operations slowly became questionable.
“None of us knew the level at which all of this stuff that finally came out was at,” Stanley said. “We knew that there was some stuff that had started to look hinky or feel hinky, or there was just some lack of communication that was happening. There were some other things that were happening, and so we just all were kind of guarded.”
In fall of 2023 the nonprofit was reported to have run out of money, and Brooks allegedly fired staff without disclosing the organization’s financial conditions and did not notify donors or beneficiaries. Stanley was one of those people fired.
The state now claims the funds that were meant to go towards communities like Blue River, never made it out of Brooks’ hands, including donations given by Blue River neighbors.
“I am angry that my community was taken advantage of, and I am angry that they now have to worry about trusting when something else happens, because we know something else is going to happen,” Stanley said. “We hope to God it’s never anything as big or as bad as what has happened, but you know, we also have learned that groups like Locals Helping Locals…they are our foundation, and they are because they’re us.”
The state is seeking to recover the money, permanently bar Brooks from serving in a leadership role at a charitable organization and dissolve the nonprofit.
Stanley said Brooks’ actions have tainted reputations.
“We as a community and as the people from the community who helped kind of put all of these things together, we did what was asked of us,” Stanley said. “We did help clean things, and we did help get things to provide, you know, more progress and get things moving forward, and we did good work, and so I just really hope that this is not overshadowed.”
According to Stanley, Blue River’s recovery now stands at 50%.
“We will be very picky from here on out about who and what groups gets let in to help with anything,” Stanley said. “And sadly, it may be to our detriment, but he did more damage now, as far as reputations go, and for that I’m angry. I’m very angry.”
-
New York11 minutes agoHarvey Weinstein’s Third Trial on Rape Charge Opens in Manhattan
-
Detroit, MI41 minutes agoMan jumps into action to save girlfriend in crash involving teen driver fleeing MSP
-
San Francisco, CA53 minutes agoSanta Rosa: The 1906 earthquake almost lost to history
-
Dallas, TX60 minutes agoJohnston scores twice, Stars hold off Wild in Game 2 to even West 1st Round | NHL.com
-
Boston, MA1 hour agoBetween Providence And Boston Is A Vibrant Massachusetts Town Bursting With Diverse Entertainment – Islands
-
Denver, CO1 hour agoMinnesota Timberwolves vs Denver Nuggets Apr 20, 2026 Game Summary
-
Seattle, WA1 hour agoAthletics Beat Mariners in Seattle 6-4
-
San Diego, CA2 hours agoEl Cajon crisis unit opens, bringing county’s total to eight