On Friday night, the Oregon Ducks received news of a marquee transfer, fifth-year defensive lineman Ja’Maree Caldwell, who is headed to Eugene from the Houston Cougars. It was the second transfer commitment the Ducks have received in the last two days, the other being wide receiver Evan Stewart formerly of Texas A&M.
Picking up Caldwell is a massive win for Dan Lanning and Oregon because interior defensive line has been a position of need. At one point, the Ducks were in the running to land Walter Nolen, the No. 1 overall player in the portal, but he chose Ole Miss over Oregon.
Nolen was the best player in the portal, but Caldwell is still an elite pick-up for Oregon. 247 Sports ranks Caldwell as a 4-star transfer and the No. 2 DL in the portal, behind only Nolen.
Below, are six things to help you better get to know the newest Oregon Duck.
He’s an elite run defender
Caldwell will bring strong run defense to the Ducks defense next year. In 2023 at Houston, Caldwell had a PFF run defense grade of 82.8. Oregon’s best run defender in 2023 was Taki Taimani, who also had an 82.8 PFF run defense grade. Since the Ducks are losing Brandon Dorlus this offseason, Caldwell’s ability to impact the run game will be tremendous.
He was 2nd team All-Big 12
2023 was Caldwell’s second year in FBS, and it was by far the best season of his career. His 8.5 TFLs (tackles for loss) and 6.5 sacks were some of the highest marks on his team, and they led him to 2nd team All-Big 12 honors. Ducks’ star DL Brandon Dorlus was first-team All-Pac-12 in 2023, so hopefully, Caldwell can carry the tradition on next year.
He started in junior college
As I mentioned before, 2023 was only Caldwell’s second season in FBS. Before 2022, Caldwell played at both Hutchinson Community College and Independence Community College before transferring to Houston. The Ducks have had success recently with junior college products such as Khyree Jackson, who was a star of this year’s defense, and perhaps Caldwell will be the next.
He played O-Line in high school
Has one year of eligibility remaining
Since he played two years of junior college ball and two years with the Cougars, 2024 will be Caldwell’s final season of eligibility (he has a fifth year because of the Covid season). Hopefully, after 2024, The Ducks’ young D-Line room will have enough experience to be a strength of the Oregon defense, but for 2024, Caldwell’s experience will be extremely impactful.
He is exactly what Oregon needed
Craig Strobeck-USA TODAY Sports
There was a debate earlier this offseason among fans about whether or not the Ducks needed to add a defensive lineman via the transfer portal or not. While Oregon was losing guys like Brandon Dorlus, Taki Taimani, Casey Rogers, and Popo Auamavae, they had upcoming guys like Ben Roberts, A’Mauri Washington, Johnny Bowens, My’Keil Gardner, and several other young guys who are expected to step up. Still, it would be valuable for a veteran to be able to come in and lead the way.
That’s exactly what the Ducks got with Caldwell, who will be among the most experienced guys on the defense and could have an all-conference season in Oregon’s scheme.
