Oregon’s secondary has been getting a makeover, and the Ducks are leaning hard into a new type of defender.
That shift was spelled out in fall camp in 2025, when former defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi talked about what the program wanted on the back end after the Rose Bowl loss to Ohio State. Eight months earlier, the unit had been blasted by the Buckeyes’ trio of NFL receivers, and Lupoi made it clear the old formula was changing.
"Having five absolutely amazing DBs last season that played their butt off and the tallest guy being 5’10 1/4 and can’t respect more what they did for us. But certainly our system is built around guys with length and of course speed and then short-area quickness and a physical tackler. That’s what we’re looking for,"
That description fits the direction Oregon has taken since then. In the first three seasons of the Dan Lanning era, the Ducks were often relying on tough, smart overachievers in the secondary, with Christian Gonzalez standing out as the exception - a lockdown first-round draft pick who came over from Colorado.
The starting group in Pasadena on New Year’s Day 2025 showed that profile clearly:
2025 Rose Bowl starting secondary
Nikko Reed 5-10 180 3-star
Donte Manning 5-10 190 5-star
Kobe Savage 5-11, 205 3-star
Tysheem Johnson 5-10, 200 4-star
Jabbar Muhammad 5-10, 185 3-star
That group competed and handled the regular season well, but it was built more on grit and instinct than on size and raw athletic gifts. Since then, Chris Hampton and Dan Lanning have steadily pushed the room toward more athleticism, better length and more matchup flexibility.
The latest step came yesterday, when Oregon added two more corners: 6-3 Bishop Gorman defender Hayden Stepp and 6-2.5 Tae Walden. Both bring the kind of length and speed the Ducks have been chasing.
Look at what Oregon has stacked in its last three DB classes, using 247Sports Composite ratings, and the pattern is obvious.
2027
Hayden Stepp 6-3.5 185 .979
Semaj Stanford 5-11, 180 .973
Tae Walden 6-2.5 165 .973
Josiah Molden 6-0, 175 .916
Malakai Taufoou 6-2, 200 .892
2026
Jett Washington 6-5, 215 98
Devin Jackson 6-1.5, 200 95
Davon Benjamin 5-11.5, 180 94
Azel Banag 5-11.5 170 92
Xavier Lherisse 5-10, 185 91
Trevon Watson 5-11, 185 84
2025
Na'eem Offord 6-1, 185 98 No. 3 CB
Brandon Finney 6-2 185 98 No. 8 CB
Trey McNutt 6-0, 180 96, No. 4 S
Dorian Brew 6-0, 200 95 No.. 95 No. 12 CB
The talent level and body type have both moved up a notch. Oregon is loading the room with bigger, twitchier athletes, and that raises the level of competition every day in practice. Those reps matter when the Ducks are lining up against elite receivers, and they matter even more in the biggest games.
The payoff showed up in January against No. 4 Texas Tech at the Orange Bowl, when Oregon shut out a potent offense and freshman cornerback Brandon Finney took home defensive MVP honors with two interceptions and a fumble recovery.
Is Brandon Finney Jr the best CB in the country? 🤔🦆 pic.twitter.com/qi1tSdto2z
- The EverythingU (@everythinguco) July 2, 2026
The Ducks then ran into trouble again in the College Football Playoff semifinal against national champion Indiana, dropping a 56-22 decision. But that game was driven more by Oregon’s rough start on offense than by defensive breakdowns. Indiana scored a pick-six on the opening play and later took over possession at the Oregon 3, 19 and 4-yard lines.
It was another lopsided loss to the eventual national champion, the third of Lanning’s career, and it leaves Oregon with plenty of incentive to keep building. Adding more length and athleticism in the secondary is the clearest step in trying to clear that playoff hurdle.
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