Oregon’s Top Trio Shocks Experts, Earns Coveted Preseason AP All-American Honors

All three 2024 preseason All-Americans earned second-team honors. However, similar to Gabriel, Thieneman and Hughes earn the honor after transferring in this offseason.

The Oregon Ducks have three players that were named preseason AP All-Americans, matching the number the Ducks had in 2024.Oregon has players on both sides of the ball on the preseason All-American list in 2025, after all three honorees came from the offense last year in quarterback Dillon Gabriel, receiver Tez Johnson and offensive lineman Ajani Cornelius.Hughes is a transfer from Tulane, and was a Doak Walker Award semifinalist last year. The Tulane transfer played in 14 games last season and ran for 1,401 yards, which ranked 10th in the FBS, and had 15 touchdowns.

What To Expect From Oregon’s Preseason All-Americans

Junior safety Dillon Thieneman leads the charge as the Ducks’ lone first-team honoree. Redshirt junior running back Makhi Hughes and junior defensive end Matayo Uiagalelei both earned second-team honors.The Ducks’ three preseason All-American selections is the seventh-most in the country behind Texas, Penn State, Ohio State, Clemson, Notre Dame and Alabama.Hughes also caught 19 passes for 176 yards and two touchdowns, and was named to the All-AAC first team. In his redshirt freshman year, Hughes was a College Football Network Honorable Mention All-Freshman and the AAC Rookie of the Year.The Ducks’ last preseason AP All-American honoree is Uiagalelei, who grew into one of the best defensive ends in the Big Ten last year. The Ducks’ defender collected 38 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss and 10.5 sacks.🦆 @DillonThieneman
🦆 @HughesMakhi
🦆 @young_concrete #GoDucks pic.twitter.com/kKRAh4TTPr

You can feel the buzz around the Oregon Ducks this preseason, can’t you? Matching last year’s tally, Oregon boasts three players on the AP preseason All-American list in 2025 — a testament to their skill and determination. Leading the charge, junior safety Dillon Thieneman clinches the lone first-team spot, while redshirt junior running back Makhi Hughes and junior defensive end Matayo Uiagalelei snag honorable second-team recognitions. What stands out this year? Well, for the first time in a while, the Ducks have talent shining on both sides of the ball — unlike 2024’s all-offense group. These incoming transfers are shaking things up and bringing fresh fire to the roster, ready to turn heads. It’s a solid nod to Oregon’s growing prowess and a hint at the promising season ahead. LEARN MOREIn addition to causing chaos behind the line of scrimmage, Uiagalelei defended a couple of passes and forced two fumbles. He was voted to the All-Big Ten first team by the media and second team by coaches, and was a Polynesian Player of the Year Award finalist.— Oregon Football (@oregonfootball) August 18, 2025

In his freshman year at Purdue, Thieneman was a third-team AP All-American and the FWAA Defensive Freshman of the Year.AP Preseason All-AmericansThieneman is a transfer from Purdue, who led the Big Ten with 104 tackles and started all 12 games for the Boilermakers last year. He also collected four tackles for loss, broke up seven passes and had one sack.