When you think of the Oregon Ducks, the first thing that may come to mind is the blazing offense, crazy uniforms and incredible facilities. Not many people think defense, and Defensive Coordinator Don Pellum took that to heart when he accepted the position after former coordinator Nick Aliotti announced his retirement before last season. Helping to strengthen this push toward a more dominant defense is monster defensive tackle Gary Baker, from Upland, California.
It was reported by oregon247sports that Baker hosted Coach Mark Helfrich, Pellum and other staff for an in-house visit yesterday, and he committed to Oregon shortly afterwards. According to DuckTerritory.com, Baker said, “That was always the school I said as far back as this spring, that if they offered I was going there.”
Baker is not considered the top recruit at his position, but if we know anything about these Oregon coaches, it’s that they have the ability to catch a guy who isn’t as highly recruited as others and produce an NFL talent. At 285 pounds, Baker runs the 40-yard dash in 4.9 seconds — a very respectable time for a big man, and one he can most certainly improve upon during his time in a college-style training regimen.
Though Baker hasn’t actually signed his papers, he is taking his official visit to Eugene this weekend, and is expected to make it official before signing day. With Baker, Oregon now has a solid recruiting class on the defensive side of the ball, with guys such as Canton Kaumatule, Rex Manu and Fotu Leiato, just to name a few.
With one week left until National Signing Day, your place for the latest in Oregon Ducks recruiting news is FishDuck.com
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Jason is a Junior at the University of Oregon, currently double majoring in Public Relations and Political Science. Jason has been an avid sports fan for his entire life, growing up playing Football, Basketball, and Baseball. Over the last year, Jason has found his love for sports reporting, and enjoys creating pieces that use his love and knowledge for sports to portray his message. In his spare time, Jason enjoys obsessing over Ducks sports, Scuba Diving around the world, and listening to music. Tweet at Jason…. @1seltank. He loves talking sports with other avid sports fans.