There are a number of wide receivers on the Oregon Ducks roster who are looking to make a name for themselves and step into bigger roles on the offense this season. One of those is redshirt freshman Jeremiah McClellan, who came to Eugene as a highly rated four-star recruit but was unable to crack the rotation in 2024.
This year there are high expectations for McLellan, a 6-foot, 195-pound player who was the No. 65 player in the 2024 recruiting class. He is contending for a starting spot. While his focus may be on the upcoming season, we had the chance to talk to McClellan for the first time on Friday, offering us an opportunity to revisit the early signing period in 2023, when he dramatically flipped his commitment from the Ohio State Buckeyes to the Ducks.
Ultimately, why did he flip?
"It was basically just the connection that coach Lanning and the staff have here," McClellan said. "I really just didn't feel like I had that connection at Ohio State. So the connection I have here, and the way coach Lanning and coach Terry, coach Stein, and the guys that recruited me, it just felt like family here."
One of the guys who played a big role in McClellan coming to Oregon was wide receivers coach Junior Adams. Adams has since taken a job with the Dallas Cowboys , but new WR coach Ross Douglas has done a great job fostering that relationship and helping to build McClellan up.
"I hadn't really had any contact or anything like that with coach Douglas, but getting to know him these last seven to eight months, I really love him as a coach," McClellan said. "He's a great coach."
There will be no shortage of competition for McClellan as he tries to carve out a share of the targets this year. Dakorien Moore, Kyler Kasper, Justius Lowe, Malik Benson, Jurrion Dickey and Gary Bryant Jr. are vying for touches as well. However, what we've seen early on from the redshirt sophomore has been impressive.
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This article originally appeared on Ducks Wire: Jeremiah McClellan details flip from Ohio State to Oregon Ducks
