After being ranked in the top 20 in the nation for most of the season in rush defense, Oregon was looking at 2004 as possibly an even better season.
That was until Igor Olshansky announced Friday he is leaving school early for the 2004 NFL Draft.
He became the fourth player in the program’s history — following Kenny Wheaton in 1997 and Onterrio Smith and George Wrighster last season — to leave after their junior season.
“I feel I am ready for the next challenge,” Olshansky said at a press conference at the Casanova Center. “These last four years at Oregon have been the greatest experience of my life. I have so many people to thank for that. I am really going to miss Oregon.”
Olshansky helped lead a defensive line that was decimated early on by the loss of sophomore Haloti Ngata. The Salt Lake City native went down with a torn anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments during the Ducks’ first game of the season, a 42-34 defeat of Mississippi State.
Oregon also was without the services of Quinn Dorsey for the first five games of the season after he was suspended for illegally exchanging game tickets prior to the 2002 season.
“(Olshansky) took on an even greater role this year as a verbal and vocal leader on the team,” Oregon head coach Mike Bellotti said. “I think arguably he was one of the best defensive linemen, not just in (the Pacific-10) conference, but in the nation. I think he is passing up the opportunity to be a first-round draft choice next year, but I’m sure he will make it this year.”
Olshansky ends his career at Oregon with 146 tackles, 11 1/2 sacks and three fumble recoveries. In Oregon’s 31-30 loss to Minnesota in the 2003 Sun Bowl, he had four tackles and a fumble recovery.
“Igor has come a long way in all respects,” Bellotti said. “His understanding of the game and his
understanding of what team play and competition was. He’s a tremendous worker, and in the NFL, where numbers are important, his numbers will be awesome, in terms of his strength, his speed and his explosive abilities. He brought that to the table immediately.”
Olshansky declined to say whether he had signed with an agent yet. He did say that he will be training in Southern California and that “there’s no guarantees and there’s probably no validity in my expectations, so my job is to just train my best and perform up to my abilities. I realize that I could only do so much and whatever falls into place, falls into place.”
The Ducks now will be left with one starter from the defensive line in 2004, end Devan Long. Overall, Oregon returns five defensive starters, not including Ngata. Bellotti said the Ducks were ready to sign six defensive lineman for the 2004 recruiting class and that number may reach seven because of Olshansky’s departure.
That, however, is not set, Bellotti added.
“Last year’s defensive line was the best defensive line in Oregon’s history,” Long said. “To top that, it’s going to be hard, but it’s definitely not out of our limits because the talent level on the defensive line is very high again. It’s just a matter of who wants it more. If we’re going to work hard like we did last year to improve more, then it’s very possible.”