McLaughlin: Jett Washington Commitment Has Oregon Heating Up
By SPENCER McLAUGHLIN
Contributor, 750 The Game
Oregon fans have been waiting for the recruiting momentum to pickup–and that patience is starting to be rewarded.
The Ducks’ latest 2026 commit is 5-star safety Jett Washington from Las Vegas, NV. He plays football and basketball at Bishop Gorman HS, one of the best producers of elite talent in the country. Washington is also the nephew of the late Kobe Bryant.
Let’s start with the recruiting impact. Washington is the second 5-star recruit Oregon has landed this cycle, and he’s unlikely to be the last. 5-star TE Kendre Harrison was in Eugene over the weekend and has already shut down his recruitment to stay with the Ducks. Washington and Harrison are the biggest pieces that have Oregon’s relatively smaller class inside the top 30 nationally according to 247Sports.
In the last week, the Ducks have now landed a top 10 WR (Messiah Hampton) and a top 5 safety in the country for 2026. They’ve had some high profile misses, most recently 5-star ATH Brandon Arrington who committed to Texas A&M late last week. Washington’s addition to Oregon’s class came later that day to soften the blow.
The Ducks beat out USC and others for the 6’5” 200lb safety who’s athleticism jumps off the screen. With Arrington at TAMU, Jared Curtis with Georgia, and Jackson Cantwell at Miami, this was a sigh of relief on the trail. There was a growing sense that even made its way into an article at ESPN that the Ducks were struggling to win high-profile battles.
Washington is a reminder that this Oregon staff has not, in fact, lost its touch on the trail.
As a player, Washington can help shape a special group of secondary talent that the Ducks have compiled. He has the ability to play as a true freshman, something that is sparingly seen under Dan Lanning but does happen every year in a meaningful way. The question is whether Washington can impress the staff so much that he will outshine the other blue-chip prospects already on the roster.
His playing time in Fall of 2026 might depend heavily on Purdue transfer Dillon Thieneman. Should he leave after this year and go to the NFL Draft, a starting safety position would suddenly come open for someone like Washington to snatch. He would, however, have to out compete other talented recruits in their own right like current redshirt freshman Aaron Flowers, former 4-star Kingston Lopa, or current 5-star Trey McNutt–just to name a few.
The secondary group recruited in 2025, headlined by 5-star CB Na’eem Offord, is the best that Oregon Football has ever seen. It got secondary coach/Co-Defensive Coordinator Chris Hampton “Recruiter of the Year” honors from 247Sports.
What I notice most about Washington is his size. Oregon’s safeties last year were undersized and not good enough in coverage to slow down Ohio State’s Jeremiah Smith. He won’t be around forever, but the Ducks’ struggles with elite WR corps is not a new trend under Dan Lanning. Washington’s trio of NFL wideouts in 2023 were all that stood between the Ducks and a trip to the Playoff as Pac-12 champions.
There is enough talent on the roster for Lanning and co. to develop a truly special secondary in Eugene. The work is now up to the staff to match the recruiting expectations players like Jett Washington set amongst the fanbase.
Spencer McLaughlin is an Oregon Ducks football contributor to 750 The Game. He also hosts the “Locked On Oregon Ducks” and “Locked On College Football” podcasts and has work featured throughout the season here.