The Ducks came away from Nike’s The Opening, a showcase featuring the nation’s top 162 high school football players, with two four-star defensive recruits — linebacker LaMar Winston of Central Catholic High School in Portland and cornerback Jared Mayden of Sachse, Texas.
Winston, a U.S. Army All-American nominee, chose Oregon over Stanford, UCLA and a host of over schools. The Ducks have now signed the 2016 class’s top three prospects from the state of Oregon — Winston, Central Catholic safety Brady Breeze and Summit tight end Cam McCormick.
At 6-foot-3-inches and 205 pounds, Winston is rated the No. 11 athlete in the country by Rivals and the top prospect in the state. He played wide receiver as a junior and is also being recruited to play outside linebacker, a position of need for Oregon. The Ducks also signed four-star linebacker Darrian Franklin as well as three-star linebackers Hunter Kampmoyer and Troy Dye to its 2016 class.
A four-star cornerback according to Rivals, Jared Mayden chose Oregon after he received offers from more than 40 schools. He declared a final seven of Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Michigan, Ohio State, Oregon and UCLA, and many believe his final two came down to Ohio State and Oregon.
During The Opening practice, Mayden spent much of his time with Breeze, Theo Howard and Winston; all of whom have committed to Oregon.
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