What 4-Star Recruit Joey O'Brien Said About Oregon Ducks, Dan Lanning

O'Brien spoke with On3 about his visit to Oregon and why he came out of it pleasantly surprised.

“To be honest, I wasn’t expecting to like it as much as I did. They made a great first impression. They showed me that I’m really a top priority for them. “I got to see everything about Oregon. The football facilities, the dorms and even a couple of places a lot of players go. They even showed me the new football facility that they are going to build," O'Brien said.

The No. 48 player in the country and No. 1 player from the state of Pennsylvania, O'Brien spoke highly about the time he spent with Oregon's coaching staff, which featured a large contingent of defensive coaches.

“I had meetings, lunches and dinners with all the coaches. Having coach Lanning, coach (Chris) Hampton, and coach Tosh (Lupoi) there all the time really made me feel like a priority. I spent the most time with coach Hampton and coach Lanning. They are so down-to-earth and easy to talk to," O'Brien said.

The Ducks have been courting O'Brien to play on the defensive side of the ball, as shown by his extended meeting time with the Oregon defensive coaching staff.

Andrew Ivins of 247Sports said that O'Brien's talent alone could land him on a championship contender, but his role is to be determined by whatever team signs him.

"Lanky perimeter playmaker with the athleticism and ball skills to make an impact wherever he lines up at the next level. As a pass catcher, can quickly flip the field for an offense...overall, should be viewed as one of the more unique prospects in the 2026 cycle," Ivins said.

Despite the Ducks getting high praises from the Pennsylvania native, 247Sports had multiple crystal ball predictions, but neither are in favor of Oregon. National recruiting analyst Tom Loy issued O'Brien a crystal ball in favor of Penn State. O'Brien also has a prediction logged in favor of Notre Dame as well.

Oregon will host O'Brien at least one more time this offseason. O'Brien will be taking an official visit to the Ducks beginnning on June 20. In addition to visiting Oregon, he will take official visits to Ohio State, Tennessee, Notre Dame, and Clemson.

He revealed to On3 that his first visit with the Ducks was one of the best that he's had. Can Lanning and company keep it up when O'Brien returns?