The Oregon Ducks won eight conference titles in their first year of Big Ten play. Each hard-fought victory deserves celebration, but today I’m ranking their impacts on their respective programs.

8 – Men’s Outdoor Track and Field

Oregon’s men (110 points) outpaced this year’s competition, with Wisconsin and Minnesota tying for second at 81 points. The program’s first outdoor win since 2022 keeps Eugene’s “Track Town” nickname an apt one.

7 – Men’s Indoor Track and Field

The Ducks’ male indoor runners eked out a narrow victory over USC (99.5 points to UO’s 106.5). The program’s first indoor title since 2021 was one half of an Oregon indoor sweep.

6 – Women’s Cross Country

Oregon’s first ever Big Ten title came in November, when the women’s cross country team (33 points) dominated second-place Washington (60 points) and third-place Wisconsin (133 points) for the program’s first conference championship since 2018.

5 – Women’s Indoor Track and Field

UO’s national title-winning women’s indoor team dominated Big Ten competition, scoring 131 points to second-place Illinois’ 82. It was the program’s first indoor conference title since winning five straight from 2011-2015.

4 – Softball

Melyssa Lombardi became the second coach in Ducks history to win a regular-season conference title and reach the Women’s College World Series in the same year. Mike White left huge shoes to fill, but Lombardi’s Ducks have never looked better.

3 – Women’s Golf

This year’s squad won the conference tournament by 14 strokes, tying the Bulle Rock, N.D., tournament scoring record of 12-under 852 across the weekend. The win is the Ducks’ second-ever conference title, the first of which (2021-22) came after 35 years of Pac-12 play.

2 – Football

Head coach Dan Lanning won his first conference title and Oregon’s first since 2020. The Ducks defeated the Big Ten’s three best teams (Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State) and held the nation’s No. 1 ranking for a program-best 10 weeks.

1 – Baseball

The Ducks’ regular season conference title marked the program’s first since winning the Pacific Coast Conference in 1954. The future looks bright for a program which didn’t exist from 1982-2008.

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Mississippi State University junior Peyton Bair won his first national title in outdoor decathlon on Thursday, finishing with a collegiate-leading personal-best total of 8,323 points. University of California, Santa Barbara senior Brad Thomas finished second with 7,888 points, followed by Kansas State University junior Emil Uhlin in third with 7,859 points.

Bair placed first in Wednesday’s first event, the 100-meter race. His winning time of 10.25 (+0.5) seconds put him in the lead with 1,035 points. Bair then maintained that lead across the next nine events, also winning the 400-meter race with a time of 46.00 seconds.

“It feels awesome. It’s something I’ve been working towards for a long time,” Bair said after his win. “Seeing my family, my wife, my coaches and friends here, I’ll just never forget it.”

In addition to his two event wins, Bair also placed fourth in the long jump and javelin, fifth in the 110-meter hurdles, seventh in the shot put and high jump, eighth in the discus, and 10th in the 1500-meter race. Bair’s only finish outside the top ten came in the pole vault, where he finished 11th.

The win marks Blair’s second national title of the year, as he also won the heptathlon at the 2025 NCAA Indoor Championships in March. The Kimberly, Idaho native finished as the runner-up in last year’s outdoor championships and has earned multiple NCAA first-team All-American honors.

“I think there was a lot of motivation to go off in the offseason and put in some work so that I can come back and be better this season,” said Bair on finishing second in 2024.

Thomas’ second place effort was buoyed by a second-place finish in the javelin, two third-place finishes in the 400-meter and 1,500-meter races, and two fifth-place finishes in the discus and long jump. 

“The decathlon is all about consistency,” Thomas said afterwards. “I didn’t have any (personal bests), but I didn’t really have any misses, and I think I learned a lot from that.”

Meanwhile, Uhlin achieved third place via a late surge. Though he finished 10th or higher in five of the first six events, he finished fourth in the discus (seventh event), second in the discus (eighth event) and a narrow first in the 1,500-meter finale (4:22.46) to complete his rally.

The women’s heptathlon will begin Friday with the 100-meter hurdles, high jump, shot put and 200-meter race, and will conclude Saturday with the long jump, javelin and 800-meter race.

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Eugene, Oregon may be known as “Track Town, USA”, but a star is rising on the Oregon field team. Redshirt freshman Kobe Lawrence capped off a promising rookie season by finishing fourth in shot put at the 2025 Outdoor Championships on Wednesday.

“It’s a dream come true,” Lawrence said post-race as he stared at the trophy in his hands, which he’d earned by finishing among the top eight of 22 athletes competing inside Eugene’s world-famous Hayward Field.

Lawrence achieved fourth position via a personal-best put of 20.32 meters. The put was 0.25 meters further than his previous best of 20.07 meters, which had stood since Lawrence competed unattached at last year’s Oregon Twilight.

“It’s always (been) there this whole season, but I haven’t got it in meets,” Lawrence said of his new personal best. “Now that I did it, it was like ‘Oh, finally.’” 

The put was Lawrence’s fifth on sixth attempts, and appeared to have earned him second place behind only Ole Miss’ Tarik Robinson-O’Hagan (20.41 meters) after five rounds. However, both Wisconsin’s Jason Swarens (21.23 meters) and the University of North Carolina’s Thomas Kitchell (20.74 meters) improved in the sixth round, pushing Lawrence down to fourth.

According to athletic.net, Lawrence’s 20.32-meter put is the best outdoor 16-lb put in Oregon history, surpassing Neil Steinhauer’s put of 19.52 meters from 1966. For Lawrence, the personal achievement also speaks to a growing throwing culture in the Oregon track and field team.

“I know I’m one of the best. It’s the right time. It’s been hard training working with Coach (Brian Blutreich) all year,” Lawrence said. “We have a good program here, and I’m finally getting to show the country that we’re coming.” 

Though Lawrence, a native of Kingston, Jamaica, turned 21 in February, he’s still only a redshirt freshman, and has three more years of eligibility under his belt. Lawrence plans to capitalize on his remaining opportunities.

“I’m going to go back and work way harder, come back next year and try to be dominant,” Lawrence said.

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The 2025 NCAA Outdoor Championships began inside Eugene’s Hayward Field on Wednesday. The first day of action included the men’s field event finals, the men’s 10,000-meter final, the men’s short- and medium-distance semifinals, and the first five events of the men’s decathlon.

Senior Kostas Zaltos led a Minnesota 1-2 in the hammer throw, finishing first with a personal-best throw of 78.08 meters. His sophomore teammate and Greek countryman Angelos Mantzouras came second with a throw of 76.96 meters, giving the Golden Gophers’ men’s team an early lead with 18 team points. Minnesota’s men finished the day on top with 23 team points.

“I finally won after (four times) being here, so I’m very happy about that, very excited,” Zaltos said afterwards. “I’m very happy for my teammate too. He had a great series, he was very consistent, and he got second. I’m excited to see (how) the rest of the week (goes) for our Gophers.”

After finishing fourth as a redshirt freshman, third as a sophomore and second as a junior, Wisconsin redshirt senior Jason Swarens finally broke through, winning the shot put with a 21.23-meter throw. University of North Carolina’s Thomas Kitchell finished in second place with a 20.74-meter personal-best. 

Ole Miss junior Tarik Robinson-O’Hagan, who’d already finished third in the hammer throw (76.78 meters), nabbed another third place in shot put with a best throw of 20.41 meters, putting the Rebels men into fourth place with 12 total team points. 

Ducks freshman Kobe Lawrence finished just outside the podium, earning fourth place after a personal-best throw of 20.32 meters. Lawrence’s five earned points put the Ducks’ men in T-19th place after the first day of competition.

Aleksandr Solovev, the indoor first-team All-American pole vaulter from Texas A&M University, won the pole vault at 5.78 meters, an outdoor personal best and the highest mark achieved by any collegiate pole vaulter this season. 

Elsewhere on the field, University of Miami All-American Devoux Deysel won the javelin with an 81.75-meter throw, and University of Florida two-time indoor and outdoor All-American Malcolm Clemens won the long jump with a wind-aided (+2.2) season-best of 8.04 meters.

No Ducks participated in track finals on Wednesday, but all four semifinal participants advanced to their respective Friday finals.

Oregon sophomore Simeon Birnbaum placed second behind Wisconsin’s Adam Spencer in the second semifinal heat of the men’s 1500-meter. Birnbaum’s time of 3:41.77 was good enough for second-best overall behind Spencer’s 3:41.67, which means the two will likely be neck-and-neck again in Friday’s final.

“I want to win,” Birnbaum said postrace regarding the upcoming final. When asked how he’d go about beating Spencer and others, Birnbaum simply smiled and said, “We’ll see.”

Fellow Ducks sophomore Benjamin Balazs qualified for Friday’s 3000-meter steeplechase final. He finished seventh in the second, faster semifinal heat (outside the heat’s top five automatic qualifiers) but his personal-best time of 8:29.87 (nearly a second faster than the first heat’s winning time of 8:30.65) earned him the second of two remaining spots in the final. 

According to Balazs, Oregon head coach Jerry Schumacher is an advocate of pacing oneself across a season, which has his Ducks feeling good entering nationals. “You always save a little bit so that when you get to this championship season, you can beat everybody you need to beat,” Balazs said. 

The first leg of the men’s 800-meter semifinal saw the top five finishers achieve personal bests, including Ducks freshman Koitatoi Kidali and senior Matthew Erickson, who finished second (1:45.31) and fourth (1:45.89) respectively. 

Kidali’s second-place finish automatically qualified him for Friday’s final. However, he fell shortly after crossing the line and briefly stayed down, meaning an injury could jeopardize his postseason.

Erickson, who noted that he prefers “doing the hunting” to “getting hunted”, led the majority of the race before losing ground in the last two corners.

“I hate losing. It’s not how I want to make a final, but I checked the box, and so now it’s onto the next,” Erickson said. Erickson secured the second of three remaining final spots when no runners in the second or third heats were able to beat his time.

The only track final of the day, the men’s 10,000-meter race, saw the University of New Mexico’s Ishmael Kipkurui (29:07.70) and Habtom Samuel (29:08.73) finish first and second respectively, earning the Lobo’s men 18 points and pushing UNM into a second-place tie with Florida (also 18 points).

The first half of the men’s decathlon saw 21 competitors compete in the 100-meter race, long jump, shot put, high jump and 400-meter race. Mississippi State University’s Peyton Bair ended the day on top with 4,479 points, buoyed by first-place finishes in the 100-meter (10.25 seconds +0.5) and 400-meter (46.00 seconds) races. 

University of California, Santa Barbara’s Brad Thomas (4,192 points) and Brigham Young University’s Ben Barton (4,190) are currently locked in a tight battle for second place. They’ll have five more events tomorrow (the 110-meter hurdles, discus, pole vault, javelin and the 1,500-meter race) to close the gap to Bair.

The 2025 NCAA Outdoor Championships will continue from Thursday through Saturday. In addition to the conclusion of the men’s decathlon, Thursday’s action will include the women’s field event finals, the women’s 10,000-meter race, and semifinals for the women’s short- and medium-distance races.

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The bracket for the 2025 NCAA Division I Softball Championship was revealed on Sunday. The No. 16-seeded Oregon Ducks (47-7) will stay home for May 16-18’s regional double-elimination tournament, where they’ll host Stanford, Binghamton and Weber State Universities.

The Ducks clinched the 2025 Big Ten Conference Regular Season Championship on May 4, but suffered a shocking 5-0 loss to Michigan in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Softball Tournament. Michigan went on to win the tournament, earning the Wolverines an automatic spot in the upcoming tournament and leaving Oregon with an at-large bid.

Thankfully, Oregon’s many excellent performances this year made them one of 16 national seeds who’ll play host to next week’s regional action. However, should the Ducks get through the Eugene Regional, their No. 16 overall seed will not automatically qualify them to host a Super Regional. 

As the No. 1 seed in the Eugene regional, Oregon will first play one game against No. 4-seeded Weber State, while No. 2-seeded Stanford will play No. 3-seeded Binghamton. The two winners will then play each other in a one-game winner’s bracket, as will the losers in a loser’s bracket.

The winner of the loser’s bracket and the loser of the winner’s will then play. The winner will advance to play the only 2-0 team in the regional final, where the team from the loser’s bracket will need to win twice and the winner’s bracket team only once. The nation’s 16 regional winners will then advance to the Super Regionals from May 22-25, where the top eight advancing seeds will host.

At the Super Regionals, eight three-game series will decide which teams will attend the 2025 Women’s College World Series from May 29-June 5/6 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. There, another double-elimination tournament will leave two teams vying for a national championship across a final three-game series.

The Ducks have never won a national title in softball, though they finished third in 2014 and 2017. Their path towards a potential first championship begins against Weber State on Friday, May 16 at 4:30 PST.

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Friday’s Oregon Twilight marked the final home meet of the Oregon 2025 outdoor track and field season. Five athletes recorded personal bests on their way to victory, giving fans inside Hayward Field plenty to cheer about.

The fun didn’t stop there. Current Ducks won 10 of the Twilight’s 32 events, and unattached Ducks (past and present) won another four events. One such unattached competitor, 2024 graduate Shelby Moran, even set a meet record (70.22 meters) in the women’s hammer throw.

Collegiate track events began at 5:00 p.m. with the women’s 1500-meter race. Sophomore Ella Thorsett overtook three racers in the last lap, winning by almost three seconds with a personal-best time of 4:16.92. Thorsett had run only one other 1500-meter this season after battling back from a femoral stress injury she’d dealt with as a freshman.

“I felt pretty good on the third lap,” Thorsett said. “I felt like I got a second wind, and it was nice to have people to hawk down like that.”

Sophomore and Eugene native Hannah Seubert set a personal record (11:08.08) in the women’s steeplechase. Seubert finished 28 seconds ahead of second-place finisher Chris Brethower and 50 seconds ahead of third-place finisher Morgan Boddy, both running for Pacific University.

Matthew Erickson, known primarily as a middle-distance runner, turned some heads when he entered the men’s 400-meter race. The senior began the race without starting blocks,, but broke away before the final stretch. The Hayward Field crowd roared with approval when Erickson crossed the line at a personal-best time of 47.04 seconds.

“This 400 was kind of just prep for the 800s coming up,” Erickson said. “(Head coach Jerry Schumacher)’s reasoning was like, ‘You don’t use blocks in the 800, this is prep for the 800.’”

Freshman Mihaly Akpamgbo had an excellent day, setting a season best in the 100-meter (10.58 seconds) and a personal best in the 200-meter (21.37 seconds) shortly afterwards.

The night’s final race, the men’s 1500-meter McChesney Invite, saw Ducks sophomore Simeon Birnbaum finish in 3:37.93, Oregon’s fifth personal record of the evening. Birnbaum pumped both fists in celebration as he crossed the line to scores of applause.

No more Ducks achieved personal bests on Friday, but there was an abundance of other action for fans to take in.

Norwegian junior transfer Daniel Thrana blew the men’s javelin competitors away with a throw of 76.12 meters. Oregon junior Zach Young finished second with a season best of 62.32 meters, while unattached former Duck Ryan Brendal (2006-’07) finished third with a season best of 60.12 meters.

“I’m looking forward to competing here next year, that’s for sure,” Thrana said afterwards. “In the summer, my goal is to compete at (the World Athletics Championships).

“I would have to get closer to 80 meters,” Thrana said regarding the competition he’d face at September’s world championships in Tokyo. “That’s achievable for sure. (If I) get good conditioning and good competition, it’s gonna happen.”

Oregon’s performances were almost entirely positive, but a hush fell over the crowd following the Wade Bell 800-meter race. Ducks sophomore William Heslam won by nine hundredths of a second (1:49.77), but fell as he stretched across the line. Heslam stayed down for several minutes and was eventually helped off the track as he clutched his right shoulder.

Section 2 of the men’s 1500-meter invitational saw Canadian Olympian Justyn Knight record a season-best time of 3:42.01, two hundredths of a second ahead of Oregon senior Evan Dorenkamp in second place. Ducks Sergio Del Barrio, Evan Bishop and Quincy Norman followed just seconds later to finish third, fourth and fifth, respectively.

The Ducks will travel to Corvallis tomorrow for Saturday’s Pac-12 Open, which marks the official end of their 2025 regular season. They’ll then return to Hayward Field for the Big Ten Outdoor Championships, which will run from Friday, May 16 to Sunday, May 18. The men’s and women’s teams both won this year’s Big Ten Indoor Championships (Feb. 28 – March 1) and now will be looking for a clean sweep in front of their home fans.

“Conference meets are always super fun, and at home it’s gonna be awesome,” Thorsett said.

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Friday’s Oregon Twilight marked the final home meet of the Oregon 2025 outdoor track and field season. Five athletes recorded personal bests on their way to victory, giving fans inside Hayward Field plenty to cheer about.

The fun didn’t stop there. Current Ducks won 10 of the Twilight’s 32 events, and unattached Ducks (past and present) won another four events. One such unattached competitor, 2024 graduate Shelby Moran, even set a meet record (70.22 meters) in the women’s hammer throw.

Collegiate track events began at 5:00 p.m. with the women’s 1500-meter race. Sophomore Ella Thorsett overtook three racers in the last lap, winning by almost three seconds with a personal-best time of 4:16.92. Thorsett had run only one other 1500-meter this season after battling back from a femoral stress injury she’d dealt with as a freshman.

“I felt pretty good on the third lap,” Thorsett said. “I felt like I got a second wind, and it was nice to have people to hawk down like that.”

Sophomore and Eugene native Hannah Seubert set a personal record (11:08.08) in the women’s steeplechase. Seubert finished 28 seconds ahead of second-place finisher Chris Brethower and 50 seconds ahead of third-place finisher Morgan Boddy, both running for Pacific University.

Matthew Erickson, known primarily as a middle-distance runner, turned some heads when he entered the men’s 400-meter race. The senior began the race without starting blocks,, but broke away before the final stretch. The Hayward Field crowd roared with approval when Erickson crossed the line at a personal-best time of 47.04 seconds.

“This 400 was kind of just prep for the 800s coming up,” Erickson said. “(Head coach Jerry Schumacher)’s reasoning was like, ‘You don’t use blocks in the 800, this is prep for the 800.’”

Freshman Mihaly Akpamgbo had an excellent day, setting a season best in the 100-meter (10.58 seconds) and a personal best in the 200-meter (21.37 seconds) shortly afterwards.

The night’s final race, the men’s 1500-meter McChesney Invite, saw Ducks sophomore Simeon Birnbaum finish in 3:37.93, Oregon’s fifth personal record of the evening. Birnbaum pumped both fists in celebration as he crossed the line to scores of applause.

No more Ducks achieved personal bests on Friday, but there was an abundance of other action for fans to take in.

Norwegian junior transfer Daniel Thrana blew the men’s javelin competitors away with a throw of 76.12 meters. Oregon junior Zach Young finished second with a season best of 62.32 meters, while unattached former Duck Ryan Brendal (2006-’07) finished third with a season best of 60.12 meters.

“I’m looking forward to competing here next year, that’s for sure,” Thrana said afterwards. “In the summer, my goal is to compete at (the World Athletics Championships).

“I would have to get closer to 80 meters,” Thrana said regarding the competition he’d face at September’s world championships in Tokyo. “That’s achievable for sure. (If I) get good conditioning and good competition, it’s gonna happen.”

Oregon’s performances were almost entirely positive, but a hush fell over the crowd following the Wade Bell 800-meter race. Ducks sophomore William Heslam won by nine hundredths of a second (1:49.77), but fell as he stretched across the line. Heslam stayed down for several minutes and was eventually helped off the track as he clutched his right shoulder.

Section 2 of the men’s 1500-meter invitational saw Canadian Olympian Justyn Knight record a season-best time of 3:42.01, two hundredths of a second ahead of Oregon senior Evan Dorenkamp in second place. Ducks Sergio Del Barrio, Evan Bishop and Quincy Norman followed just seconds later to finish third, fourth and fifth, respectively.

The Ducks will travel to Corvallis tomorrow for Saturday’s Pac-12 Open, which marks the official end of their 2025 regular season. They’ll then return to Hayward Field for the Big Ten Outdoor Championships, which will run from Friday, May 16 to Sunday, May 18. The men’s and women’s teams both won this year’s Big Ten Indoor Championships (Feb. 28 – March 1) and now will be looking for a clean sweep in front of their home fans.

“Conference meets are always super fun, and at home it’s gonna be awesome,” Thorsett said.

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The final four rounds of the 2025 NFL Draft took place on Saturday in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Four Ducks were drafted on Saturday, joining the six who had already heard their names called on Thursday and Friday for a program-best total of 10 selections. The previous record of eight was set last year in 2024.

“Pretty awesome, right?” head coach Dan Lanning said of the record after Oregon’s spring game. 

No Ducks were drafted in the fourth round, the only such round this year. Running back Jordan James became Oregon’s first draftee of the day when the San Francisco 49ers took him with the ninth pick of the fifth round (No. 147 overall).

James (5’9.5, 205 pounds) earned second-team All-Big-Ten honors in 2024 after taking 233 carries for 1,267 rushing yards and 15 rushing touchdowns. James was also an excellent rotational piece behind Bucky Irving in 2023, tallying a nation-best Pro Football Focus (PFF) rushing grade of 94.8. 

James should see decent rotational use in San Francisco, especially if 2023 Offensive Player of the Year Christian McCaffrey continues to struggle with injuries. There’s little depth in the Niners’ backfield besides second-year back Isaac Guerendo, and head coach Kyle Shanahan loves to mix up the personnel he uses. 

Shortly after the James selection, the Kansas City Chiefs traded up to select linebacker Jeffrey Bassa with Pick No. 156. Bassa was a solid contributor at linebacker for four years following an early positional switch from safety. 

Bassa — who stands 6’1 and 232 pounds — has the athleticism needed to contribute as a weak-side middle linebacker, which should make him a great fit in Kansas City. The Chiefs are searching for depth behind strong-side middle linebacker Nick Bolton, and Bassa could prove a perfect solution.

In the sixth round, the Dallas Cowboys used 204th-overall pick to select offensive tackle Ajani Cornelius, who started the last two years as Oregon’s right tackle after transferring in from the University of Rhode Island. He has the ability to switch to guard as a professional, which aligns well with the Cowboys’ needs.

The Cowboys selected University of Alabama guard Tyler Booker in the first round, but they still have uncertainty at the right tackle position. Cornelius will likely compete for that role, but also presents as a solid depth option at guard.

Slot receiver Tez Johnson was the last Duck to be drafted, going in the seventh round to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the No. 235 overall pick. Johnson – who holds the Oregon single-season record for receptions (86) — left Oregon with 169 catches, 2,080 receiving yards and 20 touchdowns. However, his slight 5’10, 154-pound frame and middling 4.51-second 40-yard dash time caused his stock to slip.

As a Tampa Bay receiver, Johnson will get to learn from two greats in Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. However, the Buccaneers are now deep at receiver following their selections of Ohio State’s Emeka Egbuka on Thursday and Washington’s Jalen McMillan last year, so Johnson may not see a ton of the field right away. Thankfully, Johnson also has special-teams upside.

No other Ducks were taken in the 2025 NFL Draft, but many others have already signed three-year contracts with teams as undrafted free agents. 

Receiver Traeshon Holden is joining Cornelius in Dallas, where the two are now rivals of undrafted safety Brandon Johnson and the Philadelphia Eagles. Cornerback Dontae Manning is headed to the Atlanta Falcons, tight end Patrick Herbert has joined the Jacksonville Jaguars and safety Tysheem Johnson has signed with the Chicago Bears.

“(I’m) really excited for them,” Lanning said of his NFL-bound former players. “And (I’m) really grateful for everything they did for Oregon.”

More undrafted former Ducks will likely sign contracts in the coming days. Names to watch include cornerback Jabbar Muhammad, safety Kobe Savage, linebacker Jestin Jacobs and  offensive tackle Nishad Strother, among others.

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Saturday’s spring game saw the Fighting Ducks (white jerseys) defeat the Combat Ducks (black jerseys) inside a mostly-full Autzen Stadium by a score of 24-20. Though Austin Novosad started at the helm for the Fighting Ducks, Luke Moga led the squad with 112 passing yards and one touchdown. Dante Moore led the Combat Ducks with 140 passing yards and an interception.

“(There were) a lot of positives, but certainly some things to improve, and that’s why they call it a spring game,” Oregon head coach Dan Lanning said postgame.

The Fighting Ducks started out hot on offense. Running back Jayden Limar ran for a nice 1st down early, after which Novosad hit freshman sensation Dakorien Moore for a field-flipping 36-yard gain down the sideline. A few plays later, Limar ran straight up the seam for a 31-yard touchdown run, giving the Fighting Ducks a 7-0 lead.

Dante and the Combat Ducks immediately responded. Dante hit tight end Kenyon Sadiq for a 25-yard completion which took the Combat Ducks to midfield in only a single play. The drive ended with a 45-yard Gage Hurych field goal which cut the Fighting Ducks’ lead to four.

After an exchange of punts, Fighting Ducks running back Makhi Hughes picked up twin 11-yard runs, and redshirt freshman quarterback Luke Moga (in for Novosad) then scrambled for a third 1st down. 

Moga attempted to find tight end Jamari Johnson in the endzone, but the pass was broken up by incoming freshman safety Trey McNutt. The Fighting Ducks settled for a 26-yard Andrew Boyle field goal which made the score 10-3 Fighting Ducks early in the second quarter.

Dante was replaced by redshirt sophomore Brock Thomas for the Combat Ducks’ third drive, which stalled out after Thomas was ‘sacked’ by outside linebacker Elijah Rushing. 

The Fighting Ducks continued to move the ball offensively, as redshirt freshman receiver Dillon Gresham made a diving reception at midfield, but the drive stalled when Moga was sacked by defensive end Matayo Uiagalelei at the 40-yard line. 

Incoming freshman Akili Smith Jr. tagged in at quarterback for the Combat Ducks’ Thomas and quickly connected with fellow first-year tight end Vander Ploog for a 1st down, but a sack by outside linebacker Blake Purchase undid that progress. Ross James’ punt travelled only 12 yards and set the Fighting Ducks up deep in Combat Ducks territory.

Novosad came back in for the Fighting Ducks, but was sacked by incoming freshman linebacker Gavin Nix. The first half concluded at a score of 10-3 Fighting Ducks after Dante was sacked by defensive tackle A’Mauri Washington and Atticus Sappington missed a 46-yard field goal.

Dante and Sadiq hooked up again to start the second half, with Sadiq hurdling a defender on his way to a 1st down. Sadiq led all Ducks with seven catches for 102 yards. The Combat Ducks then converted on the ground via incoming freshman running back Dierre Hill Jr., which put them close to midfield.

However, running back Jay Harris fumbled following a big hit from redshirt freshman cornerback Ify Obigedwu. Purchase scooped up the ball and returned it almost 60 yards for a touchdown, even stiff-arming a pursuing Dante as he crossed the goal line.

“Ify made a big tackle and the ball came out,” Purchase said postgame. “(I) picked it up and just made something happen with it.”

Dante returned to the field with the score now 17-3 in favor of the Fighting Ducks. However, he was sacked on 3rd-and-medium by redshirt sophomore linebacker Will Stratton. 

Novosad and the Fighting Ducks took over at their own 18-yard line but a false start from transfer tackle Isaiah World was followed by a sack from junior linebacker Jerry Mixon. The Fighting Ducks punted the ball back to Dante and the Combat Ducks, who began another drive from their own 48-yard line.

Dante eventually found receiver Jurrion Dickey for a 35-yard connection along the sideline which set the Combat Ducks up at the Fighting Ducks’ 6-yard line. Harris then atoned for his earlier fumble by powering into the endzone to make it 17-10 Fighting Ducks late in the third quarter.

Moga came back in but couldn’t move the sticks, which brought Smith Jr. and the Combat Ducks back onto the field at their own 18-yard line. Smith Jr. used his legs to move his Combat Ducks into field goal range. Midway through the fourth quarter, Hurych hit a 54-yard field goal which again closed the Fighting Ducks’ lead to four.

On the Combat Ducks’ next drive, Thomas found Sadiq twice for solid gains and moved deep into Fighting Ducks territory. On 4th-and-four at the 13-yard line, Thomas rolled out and found receiver Justius Lowe at the one-yard line for a clutch conversion. Harris ran in his second touchdown of the game only a play later.

Now behind for the first time, the Fighting Ducks got the ball back with just over two minutes remaining. However, they weren’t behind for long. 

After driving his Fighting Ducks close to midfield, Moga connected with Gresham on a slant route over the middle. Gresham cut up the seam untouched for a 56-yard touchdown which gave the Fighting Ducks the lead back at 24-20 with just over a minute remaining.

“He’s continued to make big plays on the field and has done a really good job for us,” Lanning said of Gresham, who led all wide receivers with 96 yards on the day. “… I think we all saw what he was capable of today.”

Low on time and under pressure from edge rusher Teitum Tuioti, Dante rolled to his right and aimed deep downfield for Lowe. The pass was short and fell into double coverage, where redshirt freshman safety Aaron Flowers made a game-clinching interception for the Fighting Ducks.

The Ducks will now enter their summer break and will return to action for preseason camp sometime later this summer. Oregon football will officially return to Autzen Stadium on Aug. 30 for Oregon’s 2025 season opener against Montana State University.

The post Fighting Ducks defeat Combat Ducks 24-20 in spring game appeared first on Daily Emerald.

The Washington Commanders selected Oregon offensive tackle Josh Conerly Jr. with Pick No. 29 in the first round of Thursday’s 2025 NFL Draft. His eventual first-round selection had been expected since high school, and the moment has finally arrived.

The Commanders added offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil this offseason but are still looking to protect rookie sensation Jayden Daniels. Washington allowed 50 sacks in 2024, tied for the league’s seventh-most. Conerly Jr. could start at right tackle opposite Tunsil or slot inside at guard.

Conerly Jr. committed to the Ducks as a unanimous five-star prospect out of high school. He saw rotational and special-teams use in his first season in Eugene, but started 14 games in each of his next two seasons as a Duck, allowing only one sack in each. He also proved himself as an adept run blocker.

Conerly Jr. was voted the National team’s best offensive lineman at this year’s Reese’s Senior Bowl, and he impressed at the NFL Combine by running a 5.05-second 40-yard dash at 6’5 and 311 pounds. He met with the Commanders during the combine and clearly made a good impression with a Washington team that appears to be on the right track. 

Conerly Jr. is the fifth Oregon offensive lineman to be drafted in the first round and the first since tackle Penei Sewell was selected by the Detroit Lions in 2021. He’s among good company: Sewell is already a two-time All-Pro and guard Gary Zimmerman (1984) was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2008.

The NFL Draft will continue with Rounds 2-3 on Friday at 4:00 p.m., followed by Rounds 4-7 on Saturday at 9:00 a.m.

The post Breaking: Josh Conerly Jr. drafted No. 29 by Washington appeared first on Daily Emerald.