Local prospect Emar’rion Winston will stay in state and join the Ducks for the 2022-2023 season, the team announced on Wednesday’s National Signing Day.
The 4-star edge rusher follows in the footsteps of his brother La’Mar who played linebacker for the Ducks from 2016-2019. Winston committed to Oregon in the summer of 2020 but briefly reopened his recruitment in the wake of Mario Cristobal’s departure.
Ranked as the No. 29 player at his position nationally and the No. 4 player in Oregon, Winston’s addition to the Ducks means three of the top four in-state players from Oregon will remain in state, completing one of new head coach Dan Lanning’s points of emphasis.
“My very first day recruiting, I spent that time on the road in Oregon, in Portland,” Lanning said in his National Signing Day press conference. “That will always be a priority for us… We have to win at home first.”
Winston brings physicality and speed to a defensive front that will be looking for a punch next season in the absence of lottery pick edge rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux. At 6-foot-4, 230 pounds and coming off of a state championship season at Central Catholic, expect him to be paired with returning pass rusher Brandon Dorlus and develop into a three down player under Lanning.
