This offseason was rough for the Oregon Ducks as the coaching staff went through a ton of major changes. Dan Lanning lost both of his coordinators, with offensive coordinator Will Stein taking the Kentucky head coaching gig while defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi took the same leap getting the Cal job.
After leaving Oregon, both first time head coaches have underwent a true recruiting tear building hype in their fanbases. Among the two, the bigger concern for the Ducks is Tosh Lupoi as he’s often after the same recruits as the Ducks out on the West Coast. On Saturday, Dan Lanning and the staff got to hand Tosh Lupoi a rare recruiting loss early in his career.
Oregon outduels Cal for exciting safety Malakai Taufoou
On Saturday Afternoon, exciting safety recruit Malakai Taufoo announced his commitment, and when the commitment was made Oregon beat out a loaded group with Cal, Washington, and Penn State all losing out.
BREAKING: Class of 2027 Safety Malakai Taufoou has Committed to Oregon, he tells me for @Rivals⁰The 6’2 195 S chose the Ducks over Cal, Washington, and Penn State“Thank you Jesus! Time to be great #ScoDucks 🦆”⁰https://t.co/SLLHyB8DYQpic.twitter.com/pBPTYrkqGB
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) May 23, 2026
In many ways, the commitment comes as a surprise for Oregon as this wasn’t a recruitment most saw Oregon winning out in. On Friday, Rivals’ Greg Smith actually predicted that Cal would land the commitment over the Ducks, but Oregon really made this recruitment interesting…