Five days after former Oregon head coach Mario Cristobal’s departure to Miami, Oregon has found its next head coach in Georgia Bulldogs defensive coordinator Dan Lanning. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution first reported the hire Friday afternoon. After it was refuted by several sources that evening, The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman confirmed the report Saturday afternoon.

Lanning, 35, made stops as an assistant coach at Pittsburgh, Arizona State, Sam Houston State, Alabama and Memphis before taking over as Georgia’s outside linebackers coach in 2018 and its defensive coordinator in 2019.

According to 247Sports’ 2022 Football Recruiter Rankings, Lanning is the No. 8 recruiter in the nation. Serving as either a primary or secondary recruiter, he has helped draw commitments from several five-stars.

The Bulldogs’ defense ranked atop the national rankings in 2021. First in scoring defense (9.54 points per game, 5.46 fewer than the next team), second in total defense (254.4 yards per game), second in pass-efficiency defense (102.17 rating), third in run defense (81.7 yards per game) and third in pass defense (172.7 yards per game).

Oregon will open next season against Georgia. The programs play Sept. 3 in a Chick-fil-A Kickoff game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.