‘I kind of knew all along’: OL Avery Michael sticking with Oregon

Avery Michael

SAN FRANCISCO – Avery Michael knew where he wanted to be and the touted offensive lineman also knew it was time to shut down his recruitment.

So last weekend prior to his outstanding performance here at the Rivals Camp, the Oregon commit from Turlock, Calif., put on social media that he was officially shutting down his recruitment and sticking with the Ducks.

Other programs tried to interest Michael but no such luck. Michael committed to Oregon in February for so many reasons and he was sticking with it.

“I feel like there was no other place I wanted to be,” Michael said. “It was the best place for me and the best place for my future.”

Why was that?

“Just because of their recent NFL success,” Michael said. “Josh Conerly was a first-round pick and coach (A’lique) Terry is just developing guys.”

Oregon’s success developing offensive linemen plus his relationship with Terry played massive roles in Michael shutting it down.

Michigan, Nebraska, USC, Washington and Cal were the other frontrunners in his recruitment and the Turlock standout said while the Golden Bears were pushing, it was actually the Huskers coming after him the hardest.

Following fellow offensive lineman Drew Fielder’s flip from Oregon to USC, where he’s a legacy, Michael took a visit to Lincoln.

But only weeks later, the standout and versatile offensive lineman closed his recruitment down and is sticking with the Ducks. He’s expected back in Eugene this weekend for Oregon’s spring game.