Finding His Place At Oregon – Jake Fisher
Michigan State at Oregon 2014 Football Program
It’s Sept. 6, 2014 and the Ducks are going to battle with the Spartans for the first time in over 15 years. Jake Fisher has played in all but one game since he arrived on campus three seasons ago, but this game is especially significant for the senior offensive lineman. This one hits close to home.
Had Fisher not taken a last minute recruiting trip to Eugene nearly four years ago, he might be standing on the opposite sideline tonight.
Staying close to the Great Lakes was initially a high priority for the Traverse City, Mich. native, who values nothing more than his family. Going to Michigan State and following the path of fellow Traverse City West alum Eric Gordon—the Spartans’ all-time leader in defensive starts—was a strong possibility. But when Fisher weighed his options, he didn’t feel like he was the missing piece to Michigan State’s puzzle. He did, however, get that feeling almost immediately during his visit with Chip Kelly and offensive line coach Steve Greatwood at Oregon.
“I have a lot of respect for their [Michigan State] coaching staff and what they’ve been doing, but this was the right fit for me,” Fisher said. “Things fell into place to where I could come out to Oregon and have a great opportunity, so I wanted to try something new.”
Had the lineman stuck with his first instinct, though, he’d be suiting up for the Spartan’s most loathed in-state rival.
On July 19, 2010, about 50 friends and family members gathered at a restaurant to watch Fisher reach for a maize and blue ballcap and place it on his head. His plan was to stay in Michigan and play for then-Wolverine’s head coach Rich Rodriguez a few hours south in Ann Arbor. It was all but official.
Fast-forward five months to the end of the 2010 football season. After posting a 7-6 record and losing 18 of 24 conference games in his first three seasons at Michigan, Rodriguez’s job was in jeopardy.
Fisher, on the other hand, was coming off his most successful season yet. The senior tight end/defensive lineman was named first-team all-state and All-Big North after tallying 68 tackles, snatching 11 receptions for 232 yards and helping Traverse City West tie for the Big North title.
Both Fisher and Rodriguez were garnering national attention for completely different reasons. It seemed the Michigan football program and its promising recruit were headed in opposite directions.
Then on Jan. 5, 2011, the Michigan athletic department announced Rodriguez and much of his coaching staff—including offensive line coach Greg Frey—had been dismissed. As a result, less than two weeks later Fisher opted to back out of his verbal commitment and explore his other options.
“I created a great relationship with the offensive line coach there,” said Fisher. “But when the coaching changes happened I looked deeper into what I wanted, and I wanted to be in an environment that I could thrive in.“
Riding the success of his senior season, Fisher was elevated to a four-star rating by Scout.com. He was considered among the nation’s top-25 offensive lineman recruits and the fifth-best overall prospect in his state.
Within a few days of de-committing from the Wolverines, the Traverse City West standout’s mailbox was flooded with letters from Division I colleges spanning coast to coast. Once again, he was faced with the difficult task of narrowing down his choices.
At the top of his list: Michigan State, Oregon and Florida. First, Fisher drove down to Lansing to visit Michigan State. Next, he made a stop in Gainesville to tour Florida. Finally, he headed west to Eugene. Five days after his trip to Oregon, he’d made his decision.
On Feb. 2, 2011—National Signing Day—the Northern Lower Peninsula was thawing. A lake-effect blizzard that dumped nine inches on Traverse City the evening before forced the best unsigned prep prospect in Michigan to push his press conference back until the next day. But any amount of snow couldn’t block Fisher from penning his name on a National Letter of Intent to join the Ducks. Florida was too foreign, Michigan State too familiar, but Oregon felt just right. This time, it was official.
The signing of the ‘Vanilla Gorilla’ from Michigan completed the deepest offensive line recruiting class in Ducks history. But despite the hype surrounding Fisher as one of the most coveted offensive lineman recruits in the country, he never played a single snap along the o-line before coming to college. A menace at defensive tackle in high school, he was known for his ability to swarm ball carriers, not to protect them.
“It was a transition that I had to take on. Lucky enough I had Coach ‘Wood [Steve Greatwood] to pass down his wisdom and help critique my technique. That helped out a lot,” Fisher said.
Swapping sides in the trenches wasn’t the only adjustment the Midwesterner would have to make upon coming to college. Going to school nearly 2,500 miles from home was tough at first, but the long flights, layovers and months away from meals cooked by his mother, Mary, are a small price to pay to have the opportunity he’s been given, Fisher said. “Being away from my family, friends, everything that I knew of—I basically had to rebuild. But I came out here wanting to play football, and that’s always been my main focus.”
Since enrolling in 2011, the Michigan product has been an integral part of Oregon’s offensive success. In 2012—Fisher’s first year as a starter—the Ducks ranked first nationally in rushing touchdowns (48), second in scoring (49.54 avg.) and third in rushing (315.23 avg.). Last season, Oregon led the Pac-12 in rushing (273.5 ypg), total offense (565 ypg) and scoring (45.5 ppg). But what makes the senior tackle such an important piece of the Ducks’ offense is his determination to never give up on a play.
When Kansas State blocked a PAT try and recovered the ball at the two-yard line in the 2012 Fiesta Bowl, Fisher leapt on the Wildcat ball carrier in the end zone to record the second-ever one-point safety in NCAA Division I history. Last season, the 6’6” 300-lb. lineman followed De’Anthony Thomas in a full sprint all the way from mid-field to the end zone. Thomas fumbled the ball just short of the goal line, but Fisher—the only lineman in sight—was there to scoop the ball up for a touchdown.
Had it not been for a few twists of fate, the Ducks’ staple on the offensive line may never have left home. But No. 75 is a strong believer that everything happens for a reason. “I probably would be there, but it didn’t work out that way,” he said. “Things work out the way they’re supposed to and I just have to thank the man upstairs for blessing me with the opportunity to be here.”