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Oregon’s seventh straight win over “little brother” (47-19) punctuated a regular season built on revelation. Along the recruiting trail, defensive coach John Neal is looking far and wide to counter the reality of losing cornerback Ifo Ekpre-Olomu and safety Erick Dargan. Neal currently boasts three secondary commitments in P.J. Locke (3-Star/Beaumont, TX), Jihree Stewart (3-Star/Corona, CA), and Dylan Kane (2-Star/Honolulu, HI).
Neal is also in the hunt to seal his fourth commitment in tabbed athlete Marquise Doherty (4-Star/Kansas City, MO). Projecting as a safety at the collegiate level, Doherty was in town for Oregon’s home finale and came away with a new understanding about what it means to be a Man of Oregon.
“What stood out the most was the family type of atmosphere,” said Doherty. “It was cool to see all of the players mingle together, even the redshirt players as much as the starters. Coach (Mark) Helfrich was really involved with his assistants on a personal level, and that was cool to see.”
At 6-foot-1, 190 lbs., Doherty has been all over the field during his final prep season. Splitting time on both sides of the ball, Doherty’s cerebral approach to the game has paid impressive dividends.
“(Coach Neal) said he likes my ability to close on routes and my football IQ. He also said I have great football instincts.”
If the distance factor can be overcome, Oregon will pluck one of the Midwest’s top talents and will strengthen what will be a very young, but promising defensive backfield.
Top photo by Craig Strobeck
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Mark Flores, a Salem, OR resident, is a Firefighter/Paramedic and an avid Oregon Ducks fan. Prior to the fire service, Flores, a graduate of nearby Corban University, spent over seven years in professional journalism including a stint at the Statesman Journal in Salem and held the position of Sports Editor for the Hilltop News (Corban). A career transition however never dampened his love of writing and FishDuck is now his source to share his love of Mighty Oregon. Flores brings detailed knowledge of Oregon recruiting to the FishDuck team and welcomes your feedback.