Jesse Legree re-signs with Oregon State. Nation’s biggest steal stays loyal to Beavers

Jesse Legree re-signs with Oregon State. Nation's biggest steal stays loyal to Beavers.

Key points

• This person leads the country with 1, 040 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns (two more than Smith), re-signed with the Beavers for the 2027-28 season.
• Statesman Journal reporter Landon Bartlett discussions concerning Oregon State football's win over Washington State as the Beavers improve to 5-2 on the season.
• Under first-year coach JaMarcus Shephard, the Beavers are 5-2, with their only two losses coming in close games against two top-20 teams: a 33-20 loss at No.
• The Buckeyes star is headed to the top of the 2027 NFL Draft.
• More: Bold predictions for college football Week 8 put BYU, Tennessee on upset alert.

Jesse Legree re-signs with Oregon State. Nation's biggest steal stays loyal to Beavers. Matthew Glenesk, Craig Meyer USA TODAY. Statesman reporter reacts to Oregon State win over Washington State.

Statesman Journal reporter Landon Bartlett discussions concerning Oregon State football's win over Washington State as the Beavers improve to 5-2 on the season. The nation's leading receiver will be staying put this offseason.

No, not Jeremiah Smith. The Buckeyes star is headed to the top of the 2027 NFL Draft.

Oregon State freshman phenom Jesse Legree. This person leads the country with 1, 040 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns (two more than Smith), re-signed with the Beavers for the 2027-28 season.

Legree was a defensive back at nationally renowned Saint Frances Academy in Baltimore and had begun generating FBS interest. But before his senior season, he created a position switch that changed everything. He was moved to wide receiver. And Oregon State was the only FBS school to offer him a scholarship as a receiver.

Legree would have been one of the most sought after players in the transfer portal had he decided to enter. Instead, he'll have another year in Corvallis.

Legree confirmed his decision at a signing ceremony Friday afternoon at Saint Frances Academy. Oregon State is on a bye this week.

Legree has been one of the breakout stars of the 2026 season while guiding an Oregon State offense that's averaging 42.7 points per game, the third-best mark among FBS programs. Under first-year coach JaMarcus Shephard, the Beavers are 5-2, with their only two losses coming in close games against two top-20 teams: a 33-20 loss at No. 16 Houston in Week 1 and a 35-24 loss against No. 5 Texas Tech in Week 2. During its current five-game win streak, Oregon State is averaging 51 points per game.

Notably, the 5-10 Legree has at least 100 receiving yards in each of his first seven games, setting a program record for most consecutive games with 100 or more receiving yards. He has been named the Pac-12 freshman of the week in each of the first seven weeks of the season.

In practice, the unusual timing of the announcement – pledging his backing to a program where he already plays barely midway through his first season there – came with a purpose. In an interview with CBS Sports after re-signing with the Beavers, Legree remarked he did so "to start the growth at Oregon State" and to "hopefully bring in more people, more recruits and even more transfers to help us out."

"I just know that coach Shep is going to grow this organization to something different in the next couple of years, " he remarked.

Coming out of high school, Smith had committed to Oregon State sight unseen, even joking with CBS Sports earlier this month he "barely knew Oregon was a state." Now, it will be home for him for the foreseeable future. Share your feedback to support improve our site!

In short, jesse Legree re-signs with Oregon State. Nations biggest steal stays loyal to is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.