USC RB Travis Dye signs deal following NFL Draft

After a successful collegiate career spent in the Pac-12, former Oregon and USC running back Travis Dye found a new home following the 2023 NFL Draft. The former Trojan and Duck star signed an undrafted free agent deal with the New York Jets on Saturday evening, according to James Crepea of The Oregonian.

Dye arrived on the scene for the Ducks in 2018, where he made a name for himself from the get-go. Over four seasons with Oregon, the star running back amassed 3,111 rushing yards and 21 rushing touchdowns on 521 carries, also adding 83 receptions for 869 receiving yards and eight receiving touchdowns, as well.

Then, Dye decided to join Lincoln Riley and quarterback Caleb Williams in Los Angeles with the Trojans, taking his talents to one of the Ducks’ rivals. He showed off why he was one of the most sought after running backs available with USC, accumulating 884 rushing yards and nine rushing touchdowns on 145 carries, along with 21 receptions for 202 receiving yards in one season with the program.

While Dye had a highly-successful collegiate career, it wasn’t always guaranteed for the former Oregon and USC star. Coming out of high school, Dye was only a three-star recruit, and the No. 1055 overall recruit in the nation, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He definitely grew and showed he’s special throughout his time.

Now, Travis Dye will be looking to once again ascend and prove he’s capable of being an NFL running back with the TEAM. Nobody should bet against him, if any lessons were learned throughout his collegiate career.

What NFL Draft analysts are saying about Travis Dye

Continuing, NFL analys Lance Zierlein provided some fascinating insight into Travis Dye’s NFL future, believing he’ll have a shot to make an impact at the next level.

“Instinctive runner with modest size who finds ways to squeeze the most he can out of almost every run,” wrote Zierlein. “Dye runs with the pace, vision and change-of-direction talent to dart through run lanes and he resets his travel plans according to the flow of the defense. He’s efficient but lacked functional speed and explosiveness in his pro-day testing.

“Dye’s third-down value helps his chances, but he might have to fight for a spot as an undrafted free agent.”