Oregon came into the season with the kind of roster that makes people talk National Championship before the first snap. Dante Moore was the headline, the Ducks were fresh off back-to-back trips to the College Football Playoff, and most of the roster looked stacked. The spot that still drew the most attention on paper was the offensive line.
That was never going to be a group Oregon could just plug in and forget. The Ducks had multiple starting jobs to sort out, and the clearest sign they believed in their young linemen came when A'lique Terry and Dan Lanning added just one transfer to the room: Yale transfer Michael Bennett III. Oregon clearly trusted its homegrown talent to grow into the job, and early on, that bet is paying off.
The biggest name to emerge so far is tackle Ziyare Addison, who turned his first start into a real statement in the opener against Boise State. Addison was hardly a known commodity before that game.
As a true freshman, he played in only two games and logged just 4 snaps. Then Oregon handed him the left tackle spot, and he ran with it.
Against Boise State, Addison was on the field for all 64 snaps. PFF credited him with allowing 3 pressures, but the bigger takeaway was the poise he showed in his first start. For a player with that little experience, it was exactly the kind of debut that makes coaches feel better about the depth chart and gets people around the sport paying attention.
That attention is already spreading beyond Eugene. Former Wisconsin quarterback Nate Tice, who also spent time as a scout and a coach after his playing career and now works for Yahoo Sports, said he’ll be watching Addison over the next few years. Tice’s comment was simple, but it carried the message clearly: he sees NFL upside.
“I'll be keeping an eye on Oregon OT #58 Ziyare Addison over the next couple of years pic.twitter.com/Uaqfe5TUUp
- Nate Tice (@Nate_Tice) September 8, 2026”
Former Penn State offensive lineman Landon Tengwall was even more direct after Week 1. He said Addison’s showing stood out among the best tackle play in the country and called him the Ducks’ left tackle of the future.
“There was a lot of great Tackle play in week 1 of CFB but Oregon LT Ziyare Addison REALLY stood out. Elite independent hand usage, mixes up the angles of his sets, and accelerates like a mofo in the run game. Oregon’s got their LT of the future pic.twitter.com/J3ZO5HuotX
- LandonTengwall (@LandonTengwall) September 11, 2026”
Addison arrived at Oregon as the 110th ranked player in the country, the 12th ranked offensive tackle in his class, and the 15th ranked player in Florida. The Ducks beat out both Florida and Florida State to land him.
If he keeps trending this way, that becomes a huge win for Oregon now and later. Lanning and Terry already got a taste of how pricey the market can be for elite offensive linemen this offseason, when LSU bought Jordan Seaton in a battle Oregon was part of.
Addison should be a redshirt freshman, though he’s already in his second of five possible seasons under the new eligibility rules. If he develops into one of the best tackles in the country, he may only be around one more season before moving on to the NFL Draft. Even so, that kind of rise would give Oregon a major piece up front and more time to keep building the rest of the roster around him.
In Other News...
Oregons Boise State Win Just Took On A Different Look
Oregons opening-night win over Boise State looked solid enough in the moment, but it carries a different feel now that the Ducks have seen how the rest of the early schedule has shaken out. The latest FPI numbers still like Oregon plenty, slotting the Ducks at No. 8 with a 22.7 rating, and they also show that the margin for error is already getting a little tighter after both teams involved in that first game took a step back following Week 1.
That backdrop matters with Oklahoma State coming next, because the Cowboys are trying to sort through an uneven start and an offense built around several newcomers. Their Week 1 loss to Tulsa only added to the uncertainty, and now theyll be without starting left tackle Jacob Sexton for the rest of the season. For Oregon, it turns a routine nonconference tune-up into a game that looks a lot more complicated on paper than it did a week ago. [Read more 🡒]
Oregon Just Got A Huge Shot With The Nations Top Safety
Oregons recruiting board for the 2028 class just got a major boost with a visit set for one of the countrys premier defensive prospects. Gaige Weddle, the top-ranked safety in the class according to Rivals and No. 12 overall, is expected at Autzen Stadium on November 14, giving the Ducks a chance to make an impression on a player whose name already carries plenty of football weight.
Weddle, the son of former NFL safety Eric Weddle, plays at Rancho Bernardo High School in California and has narrowed his attention to a seven-school visit list that also includes Utah, Cal, BYU, Miami, UCLA and Ohio State. For Oregon, landing him on campus is only the opening step, but it is the kind of early development that can matter when the nations best defensive back prospects start sorting out where they want to spend the next stage of their careers. [Read more 🡒]
Dante Moore Keeps Showing Oregon Has A Weapon Teams Fear Late
Dante Moore keeps giving Oregon something it has wanted in big moments: a quarterback who looks comfortable when the clock is working against everyone else. Against Boise State, Moore helped steer a late first-half touchdown drive on the way to Oregons 34-27 win, and his career-high 378 passing yards only added to the sense that the Ducks can lean on him when possessions get tight. The two-minute offense has become more than a situational package for this team, and Moore has been at the center of it.
For Oregon, the encouraging part is how this has started to feel like a pattern rather than a one-off surge. The Ducks have seen similar late-half success in previous games and seasons, even as the staff around the offense has changed, including Mehringers promotion to offensive coordinator. Now the next test comes against Oklahoma State, and if Moore keeps turning late-game pressure into points, Oregon will keep giving opponents one more thing to worry about. [Read more 🡒]