Oregon football has done what it’s needed to do so far, but its first true challenge is now upon it. The Ducks will face No. 3 Penn State on the road on Saturday night in their first ranked matchup of the year.
Oregon is ranked No. 6, one spot up from its preseason ranking. The program trounced Montana State and Oklahoma State to start the year before defeating Northwestern 34-14 on the road in Week 3. It then blew out Oregon State 41-7 at home on Saturday, with quarterback Dante Moore tossing a career-best four touchdowns.
Oregon’s upcoming bout with the Nittany Lions will likely be its most difficult assignment of the regular season. After that comes its bye week, which will still be consequential.
The Ducks will receive crucial recruiting news on Oct. 4 via On3.
Five-star defensive lineman Jalen Brewster will announce his commitment decision on that day. The 6-foot-3-inch, 302-pounder out of Texas is considering Oregon, Ohio State, Indiana, Texas Tech, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, LSU, and more.
BREAKING: Five-Star DL Jalen Brewster will announce his Commitment October 4th, he tells me for @rivals
The 6’3 300 DL from Cedar Hill, TX is ranked as the No. 1 DL in 2027 on all websites
Where Should He Go? ⬇️ https://t.co/SvGy27jaIY pic.twitter.com/ROARqw64yP
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) September 21, 2025
Oregon could add to dynasty potential
If the Ducks land Brewster, who is the nation’s No. 1 defensive lineman in his class according to On3’s industry ranking, they’ll add another building block to a promising future. They already have the seventh-best 2026 class, headlined by five-star safety Jett Washington and five-star offensive tackle Immanuel Iheanacho, via 247Sports. However, they have just one commit for 2027, so they need more commits for that year and beyond.
Oregon made the College Football Playoff (CFP) quarterfinal last season after winning all 13 regular-season games, and it has the potential to go far in both 2025 and 2026. Acquiring Brewster would help the program stay in contention after that, and consistently elite teams tend to win national titles.
