Oregon secured a major late-July boost in the 2026 class Thursday when four-star outside linebacker Anthony Jones, No. 27 in the ESPN 300, announced his commitment to the Ducks on “The Pat McAfee Show.”
Jones, a versatile defender from Mobile, Alabama, is ESPN’s No. 2 outside linebacker and No. 1 recruit in the state of Alabama in the 2026 class. He chose the Ducks over Alabama and Texas A&M, landing as the fourth-ranked of 11 ESPN 300 pledges in Oregon’s 2026 recruiting class.
The son of Alabama fans, Jones grew up admiring former Crimson Tide stars such as Derrick Henry and Will Anderson. Jones told ESPN that he developed deep relationships with the coaching staffs at Alabama and Texas A&M throughout his process but that his commitment was swayed to the Ducks by the program’s consistent contact and recent defensive pipeline to the NFL.
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“They’ve been coming to see me and made me a real priority,” Jones told ESPN. “Coach Dan Lanning and [defensive coordinator] Tosh Lupoi, they have a history of coaching edges and getting guys to the league with their NFL scheme.”
Behind five-stars Kendre’ Harrison (No. 12 overall), Immanuel Iheanacho (No. 13) and Jett Washington (No. 21), Jones now stands as the fourth top-30 pledge in Oregon’s latest class, which currently sits at No. 10 in ESPN’s class rankings for the 2026 cycle.
Designated as an outside linebacker in the 2026 ESPN 300, Jones projects to become a multi-positional edge defender when he joins the Ducks. He was credited with 86 tackles with 16 sacks in his junior season at St. Paul’s Episcopal School (Alabama) in 2024, where Jones plays across the front seven and features as a red zone target and goal-line wildcat quarterback.
“I don’t think he’s reached his full potential yet,” St. Paul’s Episcopal coach Ham Barnett recently told ESPN. “He could be a rush edge in college, but I also think they’ll be able to put him inside to create matchups as well. I think the beauty of Tank is you can move him around anywhere.”
Jones commits as one of five ESPN 300 defender pledges to Oregon this cycle. Washington, the No. 1 safety in the 2026 class, became the top-ranked defender in the Ducks’ class on June 19. Defensive tackle Tony Cumberland (No. 90 overall), 2027 defensive end reclass Prince Tavizon (No. 232) and safety Devin Jackson (No. 241) round out Oregon’s collection of top 300 pledges on defense.
Jones’ pledge could be just the start of a significant few days of recruiting for Lanning and Ducks.
Oregon is considered a front-runner for four-star Deuce Geralds (No. 40 overall), with ESPN’s No. 2 defensive tackle set to choose between the Ducks, LSU, Michigan, Ohio State and Ole Miss on Saturday. The Ducks are also well-positioned to land four-star cornerback Davon Benjamin (No. 63), who is also expected to announce his commitment Saturday afternoon.
