*Disclaimer: All quotes and facts in this article are completely satirical and fake, in light of April Fool’s Day.*
On March 25, over 50 contestants gathered outside the Erb Memorial Union for a look-alike contest with the goal of resembling Oregon Ducks football coach Dan Lanning.
Lanning led the Ducks to a Big Ten Championship victory during the 2024 to 2025 football season and has been an extremely loved figure on campus.
The Lanning doppelgangers all competed eagerly for the first prize win of a plastic trophy in the likeness of Lanning and a $25 HomeGoods gift card.
The title ultimately went to University of Oregon senior Bobby Mallard, who said winning the competition was a “great honor.”
“This is probably the best thing that’s happened to me in a long time,” Mallard said. “Lanning is the GOAT (greatest of all time). I guess I’ll be making a trip to HomeGoods in the near future.”
Many contestants dressed in headsets, khaki pants and UO polo shirts in an attempt to closely resemble Lanning.
The competition also consisted of a slew of activities, including a competition for the best impression of Lanning in front of the panel of judges.
“It’s just a fun time,” Jeremy Webfoot, a Eugene community member who competed, said. “I’m a big Ducks fan, so coming out to things like this is always pretty neat.”
Jim Waddles, an organizer of the event, wishes to make “look-alike” contests a UO tradition.
“My favorite part was watching the contestants do their Lanning impressions,” Waddles said. “It would be great to make this a tradition, maybe even doing a Justin Herbert or Dillon Gabriel look-alike contest in the future, maybe with a different former Ducks quarterback every year,” Waddles said.
Susan Beak, a spectator who passed the contest while walking her dog, said she found the event “stupid.”
“It’s a dumb trend, in my opinion,” Beak said. “They’re all standing out in the rain, for what? A plastic trophy? What are you even going to do with that? It’s stupid.”
Mallard says he plans on purchasing new decorative pillows with his winnings and hot gluing the trophy to the hood of his 2007 Hyundai Sonata.
