Former Oregon Running Back Travis Dye Commits to USC

Dye will spend his final year of his college career back home in Southern California to play for Lincoln Riley.

Former Oregon running back Travis Dye has committed to USC, he announced Friday on Instagram.

Dye enjoyed his best season of his career in 2021, rushing for 1,271 yards and 16 touchdowns. He departs the Oregon program fifth in program history in rushing yards (3,111) and sixth in total yards from scrimmage (3,980).

"My love for Eugene, the University of Oregon, all of my teammates and the Duck community has made this decision the hardest of my entire life," Dye wrote. "I will always bleed Green and Yellow and would not be the man or the player I am today without my Duck family."

Dye joins a USC program that has begun to rebuild its roster through the transfer portal with new head coach Lincoln Riley. USC has added a number of Pac-12 players via the portal, including Stanford running back Austin Jones, Colorado wideout Brenden Rice, Colorado cornerback Mekhi Blackmon, and Washington wideout Terrell Bynum.

"As many of you know, Erin and I got engaged over Christmas and we're ready to start our life in California together," Dye continued. "I'm going back home to play my final year of college football."

Dye hails from Norco High School in Norco, Calif. — roughly 54 miles from the University of Southern California. He rushed for 2,383 yards and 34 touchdowns in his career before committing to Oregon.

Dye, the younger brother of former Oregon linebacker and current Minnesota Viking Troy Dye, was a consensus three-star prospect coming out of Norco. Once he arrived in Eugene, he made an immediate impact behind starter CJ Verdell, rushing for 739 yards and four touchdowns in his freshman year in 2018. His dynamic freshman year included a program freshman single-game record 199 rushing yards against Oregon State.

He played behind Verdell, forming one of the top running back duos in the Pac-12. Verdell was injured in 2020, giving Dye a chance to be the lead back. After a season-ending injury for Verdell against Stanford this past season, Dye got another opportunity to be the top back, and he ran away with it.

Some of his top performances from 2021 including rushing for four touchdowns on four straight carries against UCLA, racking up a career-high 211 yards against Washington, and logging 153 yards and a touchdown in the Alamo Bowl against Oklahoma.

Now, Dye heads to Los Angeles to join a rising USC program with an opportunity to cap off an impressive collegiate career on his way to a career in the NFL.

With Dye's departure, the Ducks are left with Byron Cardwell, Seven McGee, and Sean Dollars as the only running backs with experience on the roster for 2022. Verdell has until Feb. 4 to announce his decision to enter the NFL draft or to return for one more season.

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