With the commitment of Dont’e Thornton, Mario Cristobal has brushed his masterstroke on the 2021 Oregon recruiting class.

The four-star receiver out of Baltimore, Maryland is the No. 6 prospect at his position and the No. 2 prospect out of Maryland. He chose the Ducks after being committed to Penn State and despite having some impressive offers, including but not limited to Florida, Notre Dame, Penn State, Auburn, Georgia, LSU, Miami, Ohio State, as well as PAC-12 foes Arizona State, USC and Colorado.

At 6-foot-4, the talented pass-catcher should make a play for immediate playing time in 2021, though some additional time in the locker room - listed at 185 on 247, though reportedly closer to 200 - would probably increase his chances at becoming an All-Conference player and even a high NFL draft pick.

The Ducks are lapping the rest of the PAC in this particular recruiting class. Oregon currently sits at No. 3 in the nation with one five-star, 14 four-stars, and seven three-stars; USC isn’t far behind at No. 6 with 15 four-stars and seven three-stars, but then you just have Cal and washington as the only other PAC-12 schools in the top 25 at No. 19 and No. 25, respectively.

Cristobal set the course for the current recruiting trend in 2018 with the recruitment of Penei Sewell for Oregon’s third best recruiting class in history, 13th overall. He then followed that up by putting together the Ducks’ best class in program history, at the time, headlined by Kayvon Thibodeaux and finishing No. 7 in the country. The 2020 class, the fourth best in program history, included defensive standouts Noah Sewell and Justin Flowe.

Now, despite an offseason of chaos throughout the country, Cristobal and Co. have one-upped themselves by once again signing the best class in program history at No. 3 overall, leading the PAC-12 for the third year in a row, should everything go according to plan and the commits sign when the time comes. Thornton joins an especially talented class of receivers that includes five-star Troy Franklin, four-star Kyron Ware-Hudson, four-star Isaiah Brevard, and four-star athlete Seven McGee.

Check out his highlights below!

Welcome to the flock, Thornton.

SCO DUCKS!