Oregon Ducks cornerbacks coach Rashad Wadood spoke to reporters after practice on Wednesday. 

Rashad Wadood on Brandon Finney's Mindset

One of Oregon’s most prominent players on defense from last season returning in 2026 is cornerback Brandon Finney Jr. Finney had a great start to his collegiate career in 2025 as a true freshman. Wadood was asked about Finney’s mentality coming into his sophomore season. 

“He just realizes last year doesn’t matter. It’s all about what you’re going to do next. And that’s his mentality and approach to everything,” Wadood said. “Just trying to find where he can grow at. Find areas of weakness. Things to improve on. Just taking it serious being a true vet.”

Finney signed with the Ducks as a member of their 2025 recruiting class. He was rated by 247Sports as a four star recruit and ranked as the No. 8 cornerback in the country in his class.

As a true freshman in 2026, Finney played in all 15 games. He tallies 42 total tackles, eight passes defended, three tackles for loss, one sack, three interceptions (one returned for a touchdown), two forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery. 

Finney was named Second-team All-Big Ten. He caught the attention of the whole country in Oregon’s Orange Bowl victory over the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the College Football Playoff quarterfinal. Finney had two interceptions and was named the game’s Defensive MVP. 

Heading into the 2026 season, Finney looks poised to be key piece in Oregon’s defense once again. CBS Sports revealed their 2026 Preseason All-America team. They listed Finney as a Preseason Second-team All-American. He wasn’t the only Oregon defensive back on this list. 

Oregon safety Koi Perich was listed on the Preseason First-team All-America. Perich spent the first two seasons of his collegiate career from 2024-2025 with the Minnesota Golden Gophers. In 2024, he was named Second-team All-America and First-team All-Big Ten. In 2025, Perich was named Second-team All-Big Ten.

Following the 2025 season, Perich entered the portal and transferred to the Oregon Ducks. He’ll be tasked with filling the void left by former safety Dillon Thieneman, who was selected in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft by the Chicago Bears. 

In his two seasons at Minnesota, Perich had 128 total tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, one sack, six interceptions (one returned for a touchdown), five passes defended, and one forced fumble. 

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