Well, the Oregon Ducks struck first. The Huskies and Ducks won’t even play for a few more weeks, but Oregon definitely struck first in this rivalry matchup. And that’s going to sting a bit.
Vander Ploog, a talented, 4-star tight end from California, had been committed to play for Jedd Fisch and the Washington Huskies for half a year or so. And now, it looks like he’s set on playing for Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks.
Ploog decommitted from UW and is now currently lined up to end up in Eugene. That doesn’t really feel good, you know?
There are going to be folks who joke about NIL deals and what have you, but something worth noting here is how Washington is 5-5 on the season and in year one of a rebuild under Fisch’s guidance. Meanwhile, Lanning and the Ducks are unbeaten and in a bit of a better spot.
It probably won’t always be that way, it wasn’t that long ago that Washington was competing for a national title. Heck, the Huskies have a 3-game winning streak over Oregon at the moment. But for right now, Oregon looks a little better. And Ploog is committed to playing for them.
Washington fans sound off after Vander Ploog decommits from Huskies to commit to Oregon Ducks
Washington fans aren’t exactly thrilled with the Huskies losing Ploog’s commitment. Here’s how Washington Husky fans are reacting:
Honestly, the name sounds like it should have been in Animal House and roaming around the Eugene campus back in the 70s. Maybe it was just meant to be. 😳 pic.twitter.com/FRmkCLDo61
— Booter (@Booterthekeeper) November 11, 2024
Ducks had no interest in him until they lost a TE commit to another school. Before NIL this kid would have told them to pound sand. Now they come calling with a bag of cash.
— JCS (@JShega) November 11, 2024
If it 2as that easy to get him, he wasn't okg
— Juli McClarty (@buggs1968) November 11, 2024
💰
— Dan Shelton (@DanShelton03) November 11, 2024
They’re not thrilled! Can you blame them, though?
Well that is a blow. The Huskies still have a 4 star TE on the recruit list. That is along with a young TE Degraff
— Clayton (@Clayton772962) November 10, 2024
L
— 206 DAWGS 🐺☔️ (@pnwsportspod) November 11, 2024
lol, All glory to Phil knights riches…flips 6 months after he commits to UW ? I’m done following recruiting news until spring practice hits,let’s go dawgs eat 🦆 ☔️
— BillyGoatbob (@BGoatbob) November 11, 2024
It’s not the end of the world though. There’s still time for more recruiting to be done and the Huskies have a pretty solid class assembled.
Gross 🤮
— MT Dawg (@DawgsHawksMs) November 10, 2024
I mean if you know you can’t compete with Decker I get it
— Montlake48 (@montlake48) November 10, 2024
UW still holds on to a pretty nice spot in the top 25 recruiting class rankings. The Huskies are No. 19 overall and they’re sitting at No. 6 in the Big Ten. So, that’s pretty good.
Fisch and the UW coaching staff have 26 guys currently committed to playing for him in what is his first full recruiting cycle with the Huskies. As the first season of Fisch’s tenure on Montlake is starting to wrap up, he’s still working on remodeling this roster to fit his overall vision of what this team should be.
He did a commendable job of putting a team together in a hurry, but now we’re going to see what this rebuild looks like in the long run.