EUGENE -- When Oregon coach Mark Helfrich evaluated the Ducks' latest football recruiting class on Feb. 5, he could think of just one regret.

"The only thing if we were going to sit here today and have any one thing if we had our druthers … is one more big guy offensively or defensively,” Helfrich said then, before adding that, "there are a couple things on the horizon that may or may not happen."

Filling that one missing piece might be happening soon.

Sunday afternoon, defensive tackle Ratu Mafileo told a recruiting website that he has been cleared academically by the NCAA, a step that could set in motion him eventually joining Oregon, his preferred school all along.

The 6-foot-2, 305-pound Mafileo told DuckTerritory.com that he learned he had been cleared by the NCAA on Saturday, which was two months to the day after the rest of Oregon's class faxed in their letters of intent on national signing day.

As a senior at Honolulu's Moanalua High, Mafileo recorded eight sacks and 39 tackles for loss. Rivals.com did not assign a star rating to Mafileo; 247Sports rates him as a three-star defensive tackle. He could not be reached for comment Sunday. Oregon cannot comment on recruits until they have signed letters of intent.

Clearance by the NCAA doesn't necessarily presume a straight line to joining the Ducks, but it does open the possibility. Oregon could opt to ask Mafileo to grayshirt, in which he would delay his enrollment until winter quarter so as to not count against that year's scholarship limits. There is also the possibility he could attend a junior college. If he were to choose the latter two options he would not be bound to Oregon.

Throughout the wait, his Twitter biography has included "UO commit." Maybe soon it might be changed to "UO signee."

-- Andrew Greif