Though it had been reported from various sources for some time, Chip Kelly made it official today: Garret Embry, Terrance Montgomery, and Andrew Iupati are no longer members of the Oregon football team.
Garrett Embry had been officially dismissed from the team on January 8th for violation of team rules. Interestingly, this dismissal happened long before the theft accusations which originally surfaced on January 25th. Iupati has transferred to Humboldt State University. Iupati had redshirted this year, after transferring from Golden West Community Colleg. Montgomery has decided to give up football. Both Embry and Montgomary remain enrolled in school.
While it's sad to see Embry go, his production will be easily replaced. But the loss of two defensive linemen will no doubt make Duck fans worry to some degree. However, as both players were upperclassmen and decided to move on from playing football at Oregon, I can only assume that they had seen the writing on the wall in terms of playing time. With this move, it is doubtful that they would have played a significant role during their time at Oregon. Unfortunately, if Oregon suffers significant injuries on the defensive line next year, they will be very thin, and makes the line an even bigger recruiting need in 2010, and likely 2011 if signing day goes as expected.