Oregon head football coach Dan Lanning opened his first Pac-12 Media Day press conference with nothing but exuberance and confidence on July 29. “Excited about being a part of the fastest growing brand in college football,” he said.
Lannning acknowledged how the Ducks are one of the few teams to play for a national championship in recent years.
“Since 2010 there’s been nine teams that have played for a national championship,” he said. “Fortunate enough that Oregon has done that twice.”
Coach Lanning continued by mentioning more of the Ducks’ accomplishments that define their value, perhaps a message to conference commissioners and television network executives.
“We had 2.57 million viewers tune in every single week to watch our games, which is top 10 in the nation and best in our conference,” Lanning said. He also mentioned how Oregon has won multiple conference championships.
While he wanted to give the Oregon program kudos, Lanning recognized that their focus is on this season.
“That’s past success. This is the 2022 team. We have to be focused on what we’re going to do in the year 2022 as a team and a staff,” Lanning said.
Lanning concluded his opening statement by recognizing that the Ducks open their 2022 season against his former employer, the Georgia Bulldogs.
“Certainly excited going back and seeing some familiar faces going there, getting to compete against a mentor and a friend in Kirby Smart,” Lanning said.
The moderator opened the floor for questions. Then Lanning was asked about the quarterback competition. He refrained from revealing a frontrunner nor a timeline for the starter being named.
Lanning noted that Bo Nix, Ty Thompson and Jay Butterfield have all made improvements to their game this offseason and that he believes they can win with any of the three.
Next, he was inquired about his thoughts of the general direction that college football is headed in the future with the emergence of name, image, and likeness (NIL), the transfer portal, and conference realignment. Lanning responded that the sport is ever changing and causes him to be on alert. He added that the University of Oregon puts the players’ needs first in order to maximize their NIL.
Lanning said, “You always have to pay attention. There’s usually a headline when you wake up in the morning. Fun to adapt and be on your toes.”
He continued to hammer away the notion that he trusts in the leadership superior to him and the Ducks to guide them to future success.
“Oregon has always been a premier team in college football… the ability to compete for championships year in and year out with coaching changes and different things,” Lanning said.
When asked about USC’s success and if Oregon is still in their shadow, he replied with a very blunt answer.
“We’re not chasing anybody, we’re looking to maximize ourselves,” Lanning said. “Our goal is to win every single game. We have the team to do it.”
To no surprise, he was asked how it felt to beat Alabama. Lanning immediately said that he doesn’t spend much time discussing the past, however he alluded to the ‘growth mindset’ being critical to improve.
“We’d go to the doctor after a win on Monday morning,” Lanning said of how Georgia would instantly look to improve.
“Hopefully you go to the doctor before you get sick,” he added, in reference to making changes after winning, so they don’t repeat the same mistake(s).
Lanning concluded the press conference by acknowledging the freshmen cornerbacks and key players returning from injury.
“A group that wants to be great,” he said. When asked about the young corners, he said that they all have great physical qualities in size, speed and length.
As far as the injuries go, he mentioned how 2021 starters Brandon Dorlus, Justin Flowe and Popo Aumave are all ready to go for fall camp.
“They’re going to be a big part of what we’re doing this season,” he said.
Oregon opens up its 2022 season against the University of Georgia in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff game on September 3 at 12:30 p.m.
