Oregon safety Dillon Thieneman named a college football Top 50 player

Assuming everything goes as planned, Oregon coach Dan Lanning appears to have hit a home run in the transfer portal at the exact right time he needed for his defense.

In the USA TODAY Top 50 players for this upcoming college football season, Oregon safety Dillon Thieneman comes in at No. 26 although he hasn’t played an official down for the Ducks yet.

But he does have an impressive resume.

In his first season at Purdue, Thieneman had six interceptions and totaled 210 tackles in his first two seasons in West Lafayette. He should be a perfect fit for the back end of Lanning’s defensive unit and according to writer Matt Zemek, the timing of Thieneman’s arrival couldn’t have been better.

“Oregon’s outlook for the 2025 season begins with a basic point about the Ducks’ offense. Though Dillon Thieneman is not a member of the Ducks’ offensive unit, he — and everyone else inside the program — knows that the biggest question mark surrounding the team is the quarterback, Dante Moore,” he said.

“If Moore is the real meal deal, everything should come together for this team. However, what if Moore is not a rock star? Then the Ducks would have to make sure their defense can rock and roll and do the heavy lifting for the 2025 roster. Thieneman will have to be good for Oregon to do well in 2025. The thing is, he might have to be great — maybe even spectacular — if Moore does not deliver a first-rate performance under center.”

Oregon will enter the season with the assumption that Moore will be the full meal deal the Ducks are looking for. Let’s face it. Lanning wouldn’t have worked as hard as he did to get Moore back into the fold after a subpar freshman season at UCLA. The talent is obviously there, as he was the top quarterback in the Class of 2023. But the environment was all wrong for the Detroit native.

It is nice to have a dominating defense to fall back on just in case the offense doesn’t gel as quickly as expected. With Thieneman patrolling the secondary, he provides an awfully soft cushion and lightens the load, knowing he’s back there for support. By the time the season goes into the month of November, both units should be rolling, making the Ducks a huge threat in the playoffs.

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