Oregon football's Dan Lanning lands nation's No. 2 recruiting class

Oregon football landed the No. 2 recruiting class in the nation Dec. 3 as the early signing period began.

More is still expected to come for Dan Lanning and the Ducks.

Wednesday's 19-player haul – which is behind only USC in the 247sports composite rankings – was highlighted by seven players ranked in the top 100, including a pair of five-star prospects in offensive lineman Immanuel Iheanacho (6-foot-6, 345 pounds) and edge rusher Anthony "Tank" Jones (6-3, 240), who are ranked as the No. 16 and No. 26 overall prospects, respectively, in the 2026 recruiting cycle.

At least one more five-star is expected as tight end Kendre Harrison, the No. 18 overall prospect, announced he was bumping his signing day to Thursday. The Ducks are also waiting on a pair of highly regarded players who have been verbally committed to Oregon in five-star wide receiver Jalen Lott and four-star defensive back Devin Jackson.

There was also a wild card added to the Ducks' hand on Wednesday as Chris Henry Jr., an Ohio State commit and the No. 10 overall prospect and No. 1 wide receiver, put his signing day on hold after Buckeyes' offensive coordinator Brian Hartline departed for the head coaching position at South Florida. Oregon and USC appeared to be in a battle to flip Henry from Ohio State.

"A really big focus for us going into this group was really looking for quality players that we thought could make an impact here early, be able to contribute," coach Dan Lanning said Wednesday afternoon. "It was much more about quality over quantity. It wasn't about signing as many guys as we could possibly sign, it was more about signing guys we thought would really make an impact on this team."

Dan Lanning on how the loss of both coordinators affected signing day

Lanning and the Ducks went into the final days of recruiting without offensive coordinator Will Stein or defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi, who both are moving on to head coaching positions.

Stein was hired by Kentucky on Monday and Lupoi is reportedly working out the final details to become the coach at California. The loss of both didn't appear to have much impact Wednesday as Oregon didn't mis out on any previously committed players.

Lanning said losing coaches is just the nature of the business, and his approach with recruits is being up front about potential changes.

"Every player that signs here, they always sit down in my office and I always, always share the truth about my vision for their future and what does it look like for me here in the future and the future of of our coaches," he said. "... I've been very adamant about the fact that my goal is to help people reach their dreams and goals."

Dan Lanning discusses the arrival of Gatlin Bair

Wednesday marked the official signing of four-star wide receiver Gatlin Bair, who committed to Oregon as part of the 2024 recruiting class before going on a two-year LDS mission. His brother, Peyton Bair, the two-time NCAA decathlon champion, recently joined the Oregon track and field team as well.

Bair's last season of football came in 2023, when he caught 52 passes for 832 yards and 10 touchdowns. At 6-1 and 194 pounds, Bair was a top-50 recruit and the No. 10 wide receiver during the 2024 recruiting cycle.

Lanning said his communication with Bair over the last couple of years has been limited to an occasional email or hearing from people close to player.

"Really excited to get him here," Lanning said.

Oregon football brings in local standout Tony Cumberland

The four-star defensive lineman played for Willamette High School the last two seasons after relocating from Arizona.

Cumberland was Oregon’s earliest commitment in this class and stuck with it since 2023. He was once ranked as high as the No. 18 player overall.

As a senior for the Wolverines, the 6-4, 285-pound Cumberland had 26 tackles for loss and 11 sacks to lead 6A football in Oregon.

"Tony's a great example of a guy who knew what he wanted," Lanning said. "It's been really fun watching Tony grow up and become the man that we're all excited to see. But obviously he's an unbelievable player, and unbelievable talent that did some big things here locally."

Oregon football early signing day roundup

• Immanuel Iheanacho | OL | ★★★★★

• Anthony “Tank” Jones | EDGE | ★★★★★

• Gatlin Bair | WR | ★★★★☆

• Tradarian Ball | RB | ★★★★☆

• Bryson Beaver | QB | ★★★★☆

• Davon Benjamin | DB | ★★★★☆

• Tony Cumberland | DL | ★★★★☆

• Messiah Hampton | WR | ★★★★☆

• Braylon Hodge | LB | ★★★★☆

• Xavier Lherisse | DB | ★★★★☆

• Tristan Phillips | LB | ★★★★☆

• Prince Tavizon | EDGE | ★★★★☆

• Jett Washington | DB | ★★★★☆

• Azel Banag | DB | ★★★☆☆

• Dutch Horisk | EDGE | ★★★☆☆

• Koloi Keli | OL | ★★★☆☆

• Hudson Lewis | WR | ★★★☆☆

• Tommy Tofi | OL | ★★★★☆

• Tre Watson | DB | ★★★☆☆

Players who have committed but remain unsigned

• Kendre Harrison | TE | ★★★★★

• Jalen Lott | WR | ★★★★★

• Devin Jackson | DB | ★★★★☆

Targets that are uncommitted

• Chris Henry Jr. | WR | ★★★★★

Chris Hansen covers University of Oregon football, men’s basketball, track and field, cross country and softball for The Register-Guard. You can reach him at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Oregon coach Dan Lanning lands nation's No. 2 recruiting class