Oregon
Oregon Ducks’ Dillon Thieneman Ranked Among Best Defensive Backs in College Football
The Oregon Ducks allowed just 187.3 passing yards (No. 20 least in the country) and 323.7 total yards (No. 18 least in the country) in 2024. Oregon coach Dan Lanning and defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi are going to have hard time topping that in 2025, but Purdue Boilermakers transfer Dillon Thieneman would believe otherwise.
Here are the top eight defensive backs heading in next season, according to ESPN. Three of the eight play in the Big Ten Conference, one being Thieneman as he prepares for his junior campaign.
No. 1 – Ohio State Buckeyes junior Caleb Downs
No. 2 – Notre Dame Fighting Irish sophomore Leonard Moore
No. 3 – Tennessee Volunteers junior Jermod McCoy
No. 4 – Indiana Hoosiers junior D’Angelo Ponds
No. 5 – Oregon Ducks junior Dillon Thieneman
“A guy that is infatuated with football, right? And infatuated with the extra work. You know, there’s probably not a day that goes by that Dillon’s not in the weight room, getting bonus work, doing extra rehab, getting extra film.”
– Oregon coach Dan Lanning
No. 6 – Clemson Tigers junior Avieon Terrell
No. 7 – Duke Blue Devils senior Chandler Rivers
No. 8 – Texas Longhorns senior Michael Taaffe
Through his first two seasons with Purdue, Thieneman had a whopping 210 total tackles (leading the team in 2023 and 2024), eight pass deflections, six interceptions, two forced fumbles, and a sack. The Indiana native started all 24 of his appearances with the Boilermakers while earning All-Big Ten selections twice. He was also named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year in 2023.
“His intelligence, all those things, are really picking up, you know, establishing some standards for the DB group and how they’re going to operate. I think he’s done a great job of that, and I know he’s not satisfied.”
– Oregon coach Dan Lanning
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ESPN also ranked Oregon transfer and junior running back Makhi Hughes as college football’s No. 6 breakout player. With the Tulane Green Waves from 2023-24, Hughes had 2,779 rushing yards and 22 rushing touchdowns on 523 attempts through 28 career games. He was named to the First Team All-American Athletic Conference twice.
“Every day he’s getting comfortable. He’s (Makhi Hughes) getting more and more comfortable with the playbook. You can see some of his natural ability starting to come out as he’s starting to play faster and think less.”
– Running backs coach Ra’Shaad Samples
Per On3, Oregon’s incoming transfer portal class is ranked No. 4 in the nation with 11 total commits. The adjusted Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) value of the class is $1.7 million.
“Oregon has by far the most talented Transfer Portal class coming when looking at the On3 Industry’s average ranking per commit. From three terrific offensive linemen to two Indianapolis-area defensive backs to landing the top running back in the portal, Dan Lanning and his staff cleaned up.”
– On3’s Steve Wiltfong on the Ducks
CENTRAL OREGON (KTVZ) — New rules approved by Oregon regulators aimed at how utilities charge large energy users are expected to have implications beyond Portland General Electric, including for Central Oregon customers served by Pacific Power.
The Oregon Public Utility Commission approved changes allowing Portland General Electric to charge higher rates to large energy users such as data centers. The goal is to ensure those customers pay for the cost of expanding the power grid, rather than shifting those costs onto smaller or household ratepayers.
The move comes after six consecutive years of rate increases for Oregon customers, driven in part by what PGE describes as an unprecedented rise in electricity demand, with data centers as a major factor.
Under the new rules, large energy use facilities must pay 100% of the cost to expand distribution systems needed to serve them. They must also use at least 90% of their contracted power capacity, with requirements for contract lengths and penalties for exceeding usage or exiting early.
The rules define large energy users as facilities capable of drawing more than 20 megawatts of power at a time. A separate category for “very large loads” — those exceeding 100 megawatts — includes a 1 cent per kilowatt-hour surcharge, with funds going toward reducing energy burden for vulnerable customers.
The order also includes a queue system to ensure new large users can only connect when enough zero-emission energy is available to meet demand under House Bill 2021.
While the decision directly applies to PGE, Pacific Power is proposing a similar approach for customers in Central Oregon.
PacifiCorp exclusively sent a statement to KTVZ News, saying utilities have seen a growing number of extremely large new load requests in recent years, requiring significant investments in transmission and generation infrastructure.
The company has filed a proposed tariff with the Oregon Public Utility Commission under House Bill 3546 to create a new rate schedule for “New Large Energy Use Facilities.” Under the proposal, large energy users such as data centers would be required to cover the costs of infrastructure upgrades needed to serve them.
PacifiCorp said the approach would allow the utility to meet the needs of large energy users while continuing to invest in infrastructure and protecting affordability for other customer classes.
PGE has until June 3 to file a new pricing system to implement the order, which would take effect June 10. The utility is also required to begin annual reporting on large energy users starting June 1, 2027.
PORTLAND, Ore. (KATU) — The Oregon Department of Forestry is asking Oregonians to be careful when disposing of yard debris this spring.
READ MORE | High pressure brings 48-hour warmup to western Oregon as temps near 90 Tuesday
“There have already been 23 escaped debris burns for a total of 83 acres reported on ODF-protected land in 2026,” the agency said.
The agency said that at this time last year, it had responded to 37 escaped burns.
“More than 70% of wildfires every year in Oregon are human-caused, with escaped debris burns topping the list,” ODF said. “With record-low snowpack and an abnormally warm winter, forecasters are anticipating a hotter and drier summer than usual.”
The Central Oregon District of ODF has already declared the start of fire season.
On May 14, fire restrictions will go into effect for all Bureau of Land Management lands in Oregon and Washington.
“We are increasingly concerned that 2026 could rival the most extreme years on record for heat and dryness in the Pacific Northwest,” said Jeff Fedrizzi, assistant chief of operations for the Pacific Northwest, U.S. Wildland Fire Service. “Every visitor must understand that even one small spark can lead to a costly and destructive fire in these high-impact conditions.”
Officials say the restrictions will help reduce the risk of human-caused fires. BLM officials say anyone who violates the prohibition could be fined up to $100,000 and/or face up to 12 months in prison.
More information on fire season is available on the ODF website.
The Bureau of Land Management website has additional information on fire restrictions and closures.
The Oregon Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at May 10, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Pick 4 numbers from May 10 drawing
1PM: 8-2-8-4
4PM: 5-1-2-6
7PM: 1-5-9-6
10PM: 8-6-5-1
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the Oregon Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 7:59 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 7:59 p.m. on Tuesday and Friday.
- Pick 4: 1 p.m., 4 p.m., 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. daily.
- Win for Life: 7:30 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Megabucks: 7:29 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by an Oregon editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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