Oregon Ducks take a rare recruiting loss as one of their top commits is expected to flip to hated west coast rival

It's important to stress that Topui has already decommitted from Oregon. Whether or not USC lands the top defensive lineman remains to be seen, but there's not a hole in the Oregon 2026 recruiting class that head coach Dan Lanning will need to address.

“Growing up, being from LA that’s always been my dream school and stuff,” Topui told On3's ScoopDuck earlier this month. “Especially now with Coach Nua, he’s always been talking to me. It’s down the street, so I might as well just take a couple visits there, see what they’re talking about. Every time I go down there it’s great vibes, picking up family vibes."

Holding off USC was always going to be a battle. As Topui pointed out, they're right down the street. Add the fact that he grew up in Los Angeles, and pulling him out of that area was going to be a tall task for the Ducks.

Oregon is still fighting to have one of the top recruiting classes in the country in 2026, and adding talent to the pipeline in the trenches is an important aspect that needs to be filled. Oregon will likely turn their attention to other defensive linemen to round out their class.