Oregon lands five-star DE Wesley for 2026 class

Five-star defensive end Richard Wesley, the No. 18 overall prospect in the 2026 ESPN 300, announced his commitment to Oregon on Saturday night.

The 6-foot-5, 245-pound pass rusher from Chatsworth, California, is ESPN's third-ranked defensive end in the 2026 class. Wesley, who visited the Ducks last month, lands with Oregon as the program's second five-star pledge in the cycle over Ohio State, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M and USC following trips to see each program earlier this spring.

A former top recruit in the 2027 cycle, Wesley reclassified into the class of 2026 in March and immediately emerged as one of the top defensive prospects in the latest cycle. He first burst onto the recruiting scene after tallying 55 tackles and 10 sacks in his freshman season at Sierra Canyon in 2023. As a sophomore last fall, Wesley totaled 44 tackles with nine sacks and four forced fumbles.

Wesley joins the Ducks as the program's fifth ESPN 300 pledge in the 2026 class alongside fellow five-star Kendre' Harrison, ESPN's No. 1 tight end prospect in the cycle. Wesley now stands as the highest-ranked member of Oregon's incoming defensive class, which also includes top-300 defensive tackle Tony Cumberland and Viliami Moala and three-star prospects Xavier Lherisse, Dutch Horisk and Tristan Phillips.

Wesley's pledge follows a rash of exits from the Ducks' 2026 class in recent months, headlined by the decommitments of ESPN 300 prospects Kodi Greene, Tomuhini Topui, Bott Multitalo and Jonas Williams.

Wesley entertained interest from a series of top programs upon his reclassification earlier this year. He told ESPN last month that no program was pushing harder in his recruitment than Oregon with coach Dan Lanning and defensive line coach Tony Tuioti heavily in Wesley's process. Wesley's commitment comes just weeks after his most recent visit with the Ducks for the program's April 27 spring game.

"I'd never gotten up there for a game environment," he told ESPN following the visit. "It was great to see what the coaching staff was always talking about. It was proof to me that they were serious about everything they were talking about."

Wesley's pledge marks the fourth commitment among ESPN's top 10 defensive ends in the 2026 class. No. 2 overall prospect Zion Elee remains committed to Maryland months after his Dec. 2024 pledge to the in-state Terrapins. Wesley follows Rodney Dunham (Notre Dame) and Jordan Carter (Texas A&M) among the other elite defensive end commits in the cycle.