Dan Lanning, Oregon Ducks Predicted to Steal 5-Star Superstar From Alabama Crimson Tide

Dan Lanning, Oregon Ducks Predicted to Steal 5-Star Superstar From Alabama Crimson Tide originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

There are few things more difficult in the world of college football recruiting than going into the state of Alabama and convincing the No. 1 ranked player to play for anyone but the Alabama Crimson Tide. However, it appears that Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks are going to do that for the second year in a row.

On Wednesday, 5-star EDGE Anthony 'Tank' Jones, the No. 18 player, No. 4 EDGE, and No. 1 player in Alabama, announced that he will be making his commitment live on the Pat McAfee Show on Thursday, airing on ESPN. Not long after that announcement, a prediction came in from the 247Sports Recruiting Staff for Oregon to land the commitment.

This comes a year after the Ducks also landed a commitment from 5-star cornerback Na'eem Offord, the No. 1 ranked player from Alabama in the 2025 recruiting class.

At the moment, Oregon has the No. 11-ranked class in the nation with a trio of 5-star commitments already: 5-star safety Jett Washington, 5-star OT Immanuel Iheanacho, and 5-star TE Kendre Harrison. If Jones ends up committing to the Ducks, they would become the 7th-ranked team in the 2026 cycle.

Beyond Jones, it appears that the Ducks could add a couple other blue-chip commitments in the coming days as well, with 4-star DL Deuce Geralds and 4-star CB Davon Benjamin committing on August 2. At the moment, both players are heavily favored to land with Oregon.

The Pat McAfee Show airs at noon ET and runs until 3 p.m. ET, but it is not yet clear when during that time Jones will announce his commitment.

Related: Oregon Ducks Draw Criticism Following Recruiting Site Ranking Update

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 30, 2025, where it first appeared.