Oregon insider explains how Ducks landed elite EDGE Elijah Rushing

After beginning the month of October on a recruiting high note, Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks are finishing the month the exact same way.

The soon-to-be Big Ten program landed the commitment of Tucson (Ariz.) Salpointe Catholic four-star EDGE Elijah Rushing on Monday, propelling the Ducks’ recruiting class up another notch. Rushing, a former Arizona commit, is now Oregon’s highest-ranked pledge, checking in as the No. 35 prospect in the On3 Industry Ranking.

Oregon recruiting insider Justin Hopkins joined On3’s Josh Newberg to break down how the Ducks were able to pull off the major recruiting win after initially missing out on one of their top targets this cycle. Persistence proved to be key for Lanning and his staff.

“I think it’s just the fact that Dan Lanning and Tosh Lupoi and the staff didn’t give up,” Hopkins said. “When a kid commits to another school, as a staff you can decide to give up and move on or you can continue the course, knowing recruiting is always fluid. I think that’s what Dan Lanning did, that’s what the staff did.”

Ducks kept the foot on the gas for Rushing

Rushing’s commitment to Arizona came as a surprise when it was announced on July 6, as Oregon was thought to be the frontrunner in his recruitment. The Ducks were one of four programs to get a June official visit, but Arizona had the in-state prospect on campus more and ultimately landed the hometown pledge.

As is often the case in recruiting, that didn’t stop Lanning, defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi, defensive line coach Tony Tuioti and the rest of the Ducks’ staff. Eventually, Rushing re-opened his recruitment on Oct. 8, with all signs immediately pointing towards Eugene.

“You continue to build your relationship with it. You make it really hard for these recruits to tell you no. As we know, a verbal commitment isn’t binding in any way, so if you’re wanting to continue recruiting him, you wait until that ink is dry on the dotted line and Oregon didn’t wait, so I think that’s what it was,” Hopkins said. “Just being relentless and showing Rushing what he could be capable of in this defense that Dan Lanning’s really elevated this year.”

“This one to me just screamed of somebody that Dan Lanning was not going to give up easily on and I know that it was really close with Oregon originally, so they certainly weren’t just going to back down and go hide in the hole … I had a feeling the Ducks weren’t going to give up and obviously it certainly paid off for Oregon.”

Paid off it did, as the addition of Rushing catapulted Oregon’s class to No. 6 in the nation in the On3 Industry Team Recruiting Rankings. The Ducks also landed Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei four-star defensive lineman Aydin Breland on Oct. 14, giving Lanning and Co. a top-40 duo to highlight the incoming class, along with plenty of positivity on the recruiting trail.