Penn State and Oregon Ducks are set to clash this Saturday for the Big 10 Championship game, marking only the fifth meeting in their storied histories. The spotlight is on two standout quarterbacks—Penn State’s Drew Allar and Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel. But there’s an unexpected twist stealing some of the attention: Pennsylvania’s 4-star tight end Andrew Olesh.

Olesh made headlines by committing to Penn State’s 2025 recruiting class, giving the Nittany Lions a major boost right before the big game. After originally committing to Michigan in July, Olesh flipped his decision Friday morning, officially announcing it at Southern Lehigh High School that afternoon. Picking Penn State over top schools like Michigan and Oregon, Olesh immediately became a key recruit in PSU’s 2025 class rankings.

Meanwhile, Oregon fans didn’t hold back their reactions. The Ducks, fresh off a 12-0 regular season in their debut Big 10 campaign, came into the title game firing on all cylinders. On the game’s opening drive, Dillon Gabriel hit Kenyon Sadiq for a dazzling 28-yard touchdown, putting Oregon up 28-10 at one point. As the Ducks dominated, fans couldn’t resist taking jabs at Olesh’s commitment to Penn State. One Oregon supporter quipped, “Penn State is going to get their as-es kicked so bad, Andrew Olesh will decommit and go back to Michigan.”Clearly, Ducks fans are hoping to flip Andrew again. And why not?

According to the 247Sports, Olesh is the top tight end in Pennsylvania and the third-ranked tight end in the country. ESPN ranks him as the 79th-best player in the country. As of now, Olesh put five hats—representing Penn State, Michigan, Oregon, Alabama, and Notre Dame—on the table in front of him when he made his statement. During a busy recruiting surge in November, he traveled to Penn State, Oregon, and Notre Dame. In the end, his choice was heavily influenced by Penn State’s recent tight-end history, especially its coaching staff and development.

But, in an attempt to get this elite prospect during the Big 10 Championship game (Oregon vs. Penn State), Ducks supporters used social media to deliver a harsh reality check. Their message? Penn State is a struggling program and might not be the best landing spot for a highly coveted tight-end recruit like Andrew Olesh.

Penn State’s top prospect must deal with tough facts

With 2 TD passes from Gabriel to TE Sadiq early in Saturday’s game, Oregon’s offense made a big impression. With a successful first drive that demonstrated Oregon’s offensive approach, Gabriel found Sadiq for a 28-yard TD throw. As a result, in the very first quarter, Oregon led 7-0 thanks to this TD. Soon, Oregon’s lead was increased to 14-3 when Gabriel found Sadiq once more, this time for a 2-yard TD.

The Ducks’ dependence on their TE as a primary target in the red zone was highlighted by these back-to-back goals. One fan wrote, “Standout TE Recruit Andrew Olesh picks Penn St over Oregon on Friday, On Saturday Oregon’s first two TDs are passes to a TE.” in response to the Ducks’ TE’s performance. “Effortless hurdle. And to think Linkon Cure and Andrew Olesh see tight end play like this at Oregon and say ‘Eh, Nah,” said another fan. It just shows that Oregon supporters want to sign both Andrew and Cure.

For those who are unaware, Linkon Cure is rated as a 5-star prospect by 247Sports. On July 1, 2024, he pledged to play football for Kansas State, even though he had offers from other prestigious schools like Kansas, Texas A&M, and Oregon. It’s high time for Oregon supporters to get this elite athlete. It makes sense to try to tie Andrew and Linkon together for the 2025 recruitment class. And a supporter commented, “Oregon making a statement towards Linkon Cure and Andrew Olesh’s decision this week.”

Amidst all of this, an Oregonian made a hilarious remark to put Andrew’s father in perspective. Why his father? If you are not aware, Andrew has close links to the Nittany Lions because his father, George Olesh, was a Penn State alum. According to reports, George has been very outspoken in his support of his son’s decision to enroll at Penn State, seeing it as an amazing chance for both.

Conversations around Andrew’s recruitment have highlighted this pressure, especially when he considered Penn State, over Michigan, and Oregon as choices. Following this, a fan commented, “My dad did not make the decision for me”-Andrew Olesh-Andrew Olesh’s dad.” We can’t wait to see what happens at the end of the season.