Oregon
Big Ten Power Rankings After Spring Practice: Ohio State, Oregon Ducks, Penn State
With the conclusion of spring practices, it is time to look ahead to the 2025 college football season. The Big Ten conference had four teams make the College Football Playoff, with the Ohio State Buckeyes winning the National Championship.
The Oregon Ducks went undefeated in the regular season and won the Big Ten Championship against Penn State. The Ducks lost in the College Football Playoff against Ohio State. When looking ahead to the 2025 season, where do the Oregon Ducks stand in the Big Ten?
The Ohio State Buckeyes are coming off a National Championship win, looking to win another one next season. While the team lost several players to the 2025 NFL Draft, Ohio State will have wide receiver Jeremiah Smith returning. Smith was one of the most notable players in college football and will only get better over time.
While the team does not know who the starting quarterback will be in 2025, quarterback Lincoln Kienholz had a strong spring practice. If he keeps it up, he will start ahead of five-star recruit Julian Sayin.
Defensively, the Buckeyes have continuously maintained a strong unit. Safety Caleb Downs will be returning to the team as well, ensuring the defense is just as strong as it has been in years past.
The Oregon Ducks have a talented roster heading into 2025. The team will have a new quarterback, projected to start Dante Moore. The Ducks are a school to consistently send quarterbacks into the NFL, most recently with Dillon Gabriel being selected in the third round by the Cleveland Browns.
Oregon was not hit hard in the transfer portal but did lose a couple of players to the 2025 NFL Draft. With retaining much of the roster, the Ducks are in a good position to compete in 2025. Oregon has a couple of projected first-round picks on both offense and defense, which will help the team in 2025.
Defensively, the Ducks have defensive end Matayo Uiagalelei and safety Dillon Thieneman. With the number of crucial players being retained next season, in addition to a top 2025 recruiting class, the Ducks are ready to go into the season in another dominant fashion.
MORE: Cleveland Browns Quarterback Dillon Gabriel More Talented Than Shedeur Sanders?
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The Penn State Nittany Lions made the College Football Playoff, losing to the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. Penn State is set to be a dominant team, with several key returning players including quarterback Drew Allar and running backs Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen.
Penn State lost tight end Tyler Warren to the 2025 NFL Draft, who was the team’s leading receiver. The Nittany Lions will have several returning receivers and recruited Kyron Hudson and Trebor Pena from the transfer portal. These were crucial additions, but have to get going early in the season without a player like Warren to rely on.
Defensively, Penn State lost several players, including linebacker Ta’Mere Robinson, but will have returning linebacker Tony Rojas. Penn State is another school with a consistently strong defense, and the Nittany Lions will look to make another big push in 2025.
The Illinois Fighting Illini were a surprising team last season. Quarterback Luke Altmyer is returning, and so is the majority of the roster. Illinois finished with a 10-3 overall record, going 6-3 in Big Ten conference play.
Illinois defeated notable teams such as Michigan and went on to defeat South Carolina in the Cheeze-It Citrus Bowl. With the majority of the roster set to return, the team will develop and stay competitive throughout the season.
After much uncertainty in 2024, the Michigan Wolverines have a quarterback in 2025. The Wolverines recruited five-star quarterback Bryce Underwood, who is set to start. Michigan coach Sherrone Moore is now in his second season as head coach, which will be less of a transition period for him.
The Wolverines also brought in two targets for Underwood, including true freshman wide receiver Jamar Browder and Indiana transfer receiver Donovan McCulley.
There are still questions surrounding Michigan, coming off an 8-5 season, going 5-4 in Big Ten conference play. The Wolverines have linebackers Ernest Hausmann and Jaishawn Barhman on the roster, setting up the defense for success. The Wolverines could go back to being the dominant program they have been in the past, but with many new players on the offense and a new offensive coordinator, it could take time.
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.”
The Oregon Ducks have been progressing through the class of 2027 with hopes of landing some of their top target’s commitment on both the offense and the defense.
With many names left on the board, the Ducks have started to receive some great news, including some news from someone they have been targeting since they offered back in January of 2025.
Darius Johnson Releases His Top Four Schools
One of the Ducks top targets’ in the 2027 class at the cornerback position is Darius Johnson. Johnson recently released his top schools with Hayes Fawcett, as he is entering a crucial part of his recruitment. The four schools he has listed at the top include the California Golden Bears, Michigan Wolverines, UCLA Bruins, and the Oregon Ducks.
Johnson is one of the better cornerbacks in the country. He currently ranks as the nation’s No. 178 prospect in the country, No. 20 player at the position, and the No. 14 player in the state of California, according to Rivals. Landing his commitment would be major for any of the schools, as he is someone who could see the field early due to his size, and his growing ability to lockdown a side of the field all by himself.
More About Darius Johnson
Johnson currently measures in at 6-1 and 155 pounds, and will be someone who continues to add weight through his high school program, and will eventually have the chance to really improve his frame when he gets to college. As of now, each of the four schools has a solid chance to win its recruiting battle, but there seems to be a clear leader at this moment.
The leader for the Ducks target seems to be the Michigan Wolverines, who have the only scheduled official visit at this moment. It seems likely that the talented prospect will schedule his other official visits sooner rather than later now that he has officially cut down his list. If the Ducks want to land his commitment, they will need to get him on an official visit because they are likely trailing at this point.
What If He Committed to Oregon Today?
If he were to commit to the Ducks today, he would be the ninth commitment for the Ducks in the class of 2027. He would also be the third cornerback commit for the Ducks in the class of 2027, which is a position they have been recruiting heavily. The cornerbacks the Ducks have at this moment are four-star Ai’King Hall from the state of Alabama and four-star Josiah Molden from the state of Oregon.
Some of their other commits at this moment include four-star EDGE Rashad Streets, four-star defensive linemen Zane Rowe, and four-star EDGE Cameron Pritchett. This class is shaping up to be another top-five class if the pieces continue to fall into place for Oregon coach Dan Lanning and his staff.
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