Oregon adds former Nebraska defensive tackle Jordon Riley
Oregon added to its defensive line Sunday evening with a major transfer addition from the portal.
Jordon Riley, a 6-foot-6, 310-pound defensive lineman from Nebraska, has followed his former position coach from Lincoln to Eugene to spend his last season of eligibility with the Ducks. Riley announced the news on Twitter Sunday night.
https://twitter.com/Thejordonriley/status/1487980045515649028?s=20&t=oTsL_LQlxFVqxHfc2A6EZA
Riley signed with the Huskers out of Garden City Community College in the 2020 class. He began his collegiate career at North Carolina, where he spent two seasons (2017-18).
Upon his arrival in Lincoln, he was expected to play a rotation role on the interior of the Husker defensive line, with the frame to hold his own on the interior and the mobility to kick outside to defensive end on occasion. But things never quite clicked for Riley and the Huskers, and he managed just eight tackles and one tackle for loss across 16 appearances in two seasons.
Still, Riley has a familiarity with both new Oregon defensive line coach Tony Tuioti and his language after spending two seasons together at NU. Equally important: Tuioti knows Riley’s game and how to motivate the big defender.
Oregon is getting back both Brandon Dorlus and Popo Aumavae from last year’s squad, so there’s a good amount of playmaking returning in the middle of that defensive front, but Oregon has nonetheless made building depth at that spot a priority. The Ducks have also added former Washington defensive tackle Sam Taimani from the transfer portal.
In addition to Riley, Oregon also added a scholarship kicker from the portal on Sunday. Former Washington State kicker Andrew Boyle announced his commitment to the Ducks on Twitter. Boyle spent three seasons in Pullman, redshirting in 2019, which will leave him with three more seasons of eligibility for Oregon. Though he’s yet to attempt a field goal, Boyle was an emergency punter for the Cougars—two punts, 44.5-yard average—and handled 10 kickoffs over the last two seasons, drawing touchbacks on four.