Big Ten Names Pair Of Oregon Ducks To Preseason Honors List

Uiagalelei and Thieneman make the conference’s official preseason list just a day after five Oregon players made USA Today’s All-Big Ten Preseason Team. In addition to Uiagalelei and Thieneman, linebacker Bryce Boettcher and offensive linemen Isaiah World and Emmanuel Pregnon secured preseason honors.

Only seven of the 18 Big Ten programs had players earn Big Ten Preseason Honors, with the Penn State Nittany Lions and Ohio State Buckeyes leading the way with three players each.

Full List

Quarterback Luke Altmyer (Illinois)

Linebacker Gabe Jacas (Illinois)

Defensive lineman Mikail Kamara (Indiana)

Offensive tackle Gennings Dunker (Iowa)

Center Logan Jones (Iowa)

Defensive back Koi Perich (Minnesota)

Defensive end Matayo Uiagalelei (Oregon)

Safety Thieneman (Oregon)

Safety Caleb Downs (Ohio State)

Wide receiver Jeremiah Smith (Ohio State)

Linebacker Sonny Styles (Ohio State)

Quarterback Drew Allar (Penn State)

Defensive end Dani Dennis-Sutton (Penn State)

Running back Nicholas Singleton (Penn State)

Thieneman Set For First Season With Oregon

Lanning landed one of the top transfers in the portal during the offseason in Thieneman. He enters his junior season off a year with the Purdue Boilermakers, where he recorded 104 tackles in 12 starts, which led all Big Ten defensive backs.  The safety’s freshman year with the Boilermakers was just as impressive, with six interceptions and 106 total tackles.

Thieneman also joined Ducks transfer running back Makhi Hughes on the Walter Camp preseason all-America team at the beginning of July.

He’ll be surrounded by a stronger supporting cast this season than he had at Purdue. That means his numbers could take a slight dip with other players chipping in similar numbers, but the addition of Thieneman should certainly bolster Oregon’s defense, as well as his draft stock.

Uiagalelei Poised For Standout Junior Season

While Thieneman prepares to continue his defensive production on a new team, Uiagalelei returns for his third season of Oregon football.

The defensive end led the conference last season with 10.5 sacks, also tallying 12.5 tackles for a loss. He also forced two fumbles in his 14 appearances, earning himself a spot on an All-Big Ten team by both the media and coaches as a sophomore.

Uiagelelei’s breakout 2024 campaign came after making an impact as a freshman, playing 330 defensive snaps and recording 18 tackles.

Like Thieneman, Uiagalelei has stood out as a top player at his position nationally in his first two seasons while showing that he’s still getting better at the same time. Both players are projected to be selected early in next spring’s NFL Draft.

But first, the defensive duo has its eyes set on conquering the Big Ten and reaching the College Football Playoff for a second straight season. Uiagalelei is set to join Lanning, Boettcher and tight end Kenyon Sadiq on July 23 at Big Ten Media Day ahead of their season opener on Aug. 30.