West Spotlight: Winners and losers of October
Rivals.com national recruiting director Adam Gorney breaks down notable winners and losers for the month of October in the West.
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Winner: Oregon’s defensive recruiting
The rich just keep getting richer.
Oregon already has the top-rated class in the Pac-12 and the Ducks are fifth nationally as October was another great month on the recruiting trail for coach Dan Lanning and his staff, with a focus on the defensive side of the ball.
Four-star defensive end Elijah Rushing, who has incredible length and burst off the line of scrimmage, essentially flipped from Arizona to Oregon. The Ducks also beat out Miami and Georgia for Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei four-star defensive lineman Aydin Breland. And Oregon closed late to land JUCO cornerback Sione Laulea, who was also looking at Penn State and many others.
Oregon is sixth in the College Football Playoff rankings and if it wins out it has a real argument to make the final four. If not for some poor decisions late against Washington, the Ducks would be undefeated. The on-field stuff is going great and recruiting is going even better as Lanning has Oregon headed in all the right directions.
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Winners: Offensive linemen going to the portal who want to play at Colorado.
First-year Colorado coach Deion Sanders went to the transfer portal to basically turn over the entire roster heading into this season, and nearly every key contributor was not with the Buffaloes last season.
After quarterback Shedeur Sanders got bounced around like a ragdoll once again last weekend against UCLA it's obvious Colorado has glaring offensive line issues. Players at center, guard and tackle heading to the transfer portal could head to Boulder and play early.
Sanders basically said so after the loss to the Bruins.
“The big picture, you go get new linemen," Deion Sanders said. "That's the picture, and I’m gonna paint it perfectly.”
Colorado only has 10 commitments in this class with two offensive linemen. Elite four-star Jordan Seaton visits this weekend. But this doesn’t feel like something that can take time and develop over the years.
That means Sanders will head back to the portal – and that means opportunities abound for those looking for a fresh opportunity.
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Loser: USC’s defense
Reinforcements are on the way, especially at defensive back, where assistant coach Donte Williams deserves a lot of credit for getting four-stars Jarvis Boatwright, Marcelles Williams, Isaiah Rubin and Braylon Conley, along with high three-star Marquis Gallegos, in the class.
But USC’s defense has been so woefully bad this season that one wonders if other elite defensive players in the region are basically just saying, "I’m good, I’ll pass."
Cal scored 49 last weekend against the Trojans, who needed a two-point conversion stop to win the game. Jaydn Ott rushed for 153 yards and three touchdowns and QB Fernando Mendoza (not to be confused with Tom Brady) threw for two scores and rushed for two more.
USC can basically score at will, but the Trojans can’t stop anybody as the heat gets turned up on defensive coordinator Alex Grinch. Washington comes to town this week, and it's a huge opportunity for the USC defense, but also a worrisome game since the Huskies can put up points, too.
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Loser: Utah’s recruiting efforts in autumn
How Kyle Whittingham runs his program works, there is no questioning that. But after a great start to the season, the Utes are now 6-2 after losing to Oregon, and recruiting has not taken off at all.
Utah is ranked last in the Pac-12 rankings, tying a conference-low with 10 commits (Colorado has the same number). The Utes are No. 71 nationally, sandwiched between James Madison and Colorado State right now.
Only one player – three-star in-state athlete Davis Andrews, who picked Utah over Notre Dame – has committed since mid-August.
Whittingham is a smart guy who knows football. So what gives? My guess is that Utah has dialed back high school recruiting to focus on the portal.
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Winner: Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa
More than once this season when going to see powerhouse Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco, people around the program have told me that Viliamu-Asa is the best defensive player maybe in program history.
That’s a long list of really talented players, but the Notre Dame commit has proven it time and time again this season. He has the physical size and ability to make plays all over the field. He is also athletic and fast, fearless, loves to hit and has a competitive drive that’s off the charts.
He’s also smart. He sees things happening and reacts. He’s a leader of the defense, a no-problem kid who the coaches love.
Is he a five-star? That is still up for debate, especially since linebackers aren’t taken often anymore in the first round of the NFL Draft. But he deserves a bump in the rankings and should be in the five-star discussion. He’s been that good.