Huskies Flipping 2026 Top 25 Recruit From Oregon Big in Many Ways

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The Washington Huskies flipped one of the nation’s top offensive lineman from Oregon on Thursday. Credit: University of Washington [/caption]

Washington Huskies coach Jedd Fisch accomplished arguably his biggest win at UW by reportedly flipping the top Class of 2026 offensive lineman on the West Coast away from Oregon.

As first reported by Brandon Huffman of 247Sports, Kodi Greene, a 6-6, 285-pound junior at powerhouse high school football program Mater Dei in Santa Ana, Calif., committed to Washington on Thursday. First-year offensive line coach Michael Switzer led much of the late recruiting effort to land the five-star recruit, who spent his first two high school years at Eastside Catholic in Sammamish, WA, before moving south.

Green is currently ranked by 247Sports as the No. 22 national prospect overall in the 247Sports composite rankings, No. 6 among offensive linemen, and is the top o-line prospect on the West Coast.

"The visit to Washington was awesome and really got me thinking about how special going home would be,” Greene told 247Sports. “Family is everything to me, so having the opportunity to stay home, play with my brother [Kayden Greene, a freshman defensive back], stay true to my roots and create something truly special at home is a feeling in my heart that I just can't describe. My brother and I grew up dreaming of becoming Dawgs together someday. That being said, after a lot of conversations with my family, especially my dad, and prayer, I have decided I'll be going home to become a Dawg."

Green looked dominant during his junior season at Mater Dei, which plays against some of the best competition in the nation.

Recruiting commitments are fluid in modern college football, so Greene is not here until he’s here, hasn’t played until he’s played, and hasn’t stayed until he has stayed. But, this is a big deal for the Huskies program for many reasons.

They Beat Oregon

If you steal a recruit from anyone, that's good. If you take a recruit from a perennial Top 10 program, that’s great. Picking the pocket of Oregon is as good as it gets when it comes to Washington recruiting. The Huskies and the Ducks are neck-and-neck in the 2026 recruiting rankings, sitting 19th and 17th, respectively. While Greene helps with those rankings, it’s a big win for the perception of Fisch’s program as he heads into his second season. Washington saw a couple of four-star recruits flip the other way in the 2025 class, so it’s a momentum shift that was much needed by the Huskies.

Building the Fence Around Washington

The proverbial fence remains important for college football programs, though it’s not quite the same as in years past. Recruits are much more willing to move away, knowing they can transfer down the road if it doesn’t work out away from home. But the fence between Washington and Oregon remains more crucial than ever. Athletes heading to Ohio State is a little easier to stomach for fans than Oregon taking players from Washington. Fairly recently, UW lost Rainier Beach offensive tackle Josh Conerly Jr. and Yelm linebacker Brayden Platt to the Ducks.

Fisch seems to have a bigger emphasis on keeping local players in Washington than the previous coaching staff. Though the state of Washington does not produce enough players to form a full Big Ten-level recruiting class, it remains important to keep the best players around. Local guys may be less likely to transfer and often bring a different level of energy and emotion, especially early on. While it would typically be foolish to take a local 3-star player over a 4-star from another area, it makes more sense to focus on local players when the coaches have them similarly rated. Though Greene is in California, he still considers Washington home, so count this as a fenced-in guy.

Big Guys Are Hard to Find

The world is not full of powerful, 6-6, 285-pound 17-year-olds who can run — especially on the West Coast. For UW to compete for Big Ten titles, it needs to continue to grow — in individual size and in overall numbers — the offensive and defensive line rooms. While Ohio State used skill players like Jeremiah Smith and Lakewood’s Emeka Egbuka to win the 2024 national title, dominant line play allowed all that to happen. UW looks to have improved in that area in Fisch’s second year, but more progress is needed to compete with the likes of Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State and Oregon.

Curb Your Enthusiasm

Not to throw a wet blanket on this recruiting development, but it’s important to remember that you never know how a prospect will pan out — even when they stick around. We will dive into this a little deeper on another day, but Washington’s Top 10 all-time recruits are a mixed bag. Greene, with an overall rating of 94, currently ranks seventh of UW’s all-time modern recruits, according to 247Sports. He sits behind Sam Huard, Matt Tuiasosopo and Nathan Rhodes on that list. Two of them never played football after high school, and Huard played in one game before transferring. While it’s better to have higher-ranked recruiting classes every year, it’s important not to put too much expectation on any individual prospect.

But, for today, it’s a win.