Dan Lanning recalls 'most influential year' in his coaching career working under Nick Saban

Oregon coach Dan Lanning isn’t going to replace former Alabama coach Nick Saban, but he still has a special place in his heart for arguably the greatest college football coach of all time.

Lanning joined The Pat McAfee Show Thursday afternoon and offered his thoughts on Nick Saban and his place in college football history.

“The GOAT, man,” Dan Lanning said. “On my phone I have a voicemail saved of the very first time Nick ever called me. It pops up on your phone, ‘Unknown caller’ or ‘no caller ID,’ so I didn’t answer it. It was the greatest thing I ever did, because now I have a voice message on my phone for the rest of my life.

“When I was a DBs coach at Sam Houston State that [voicemail] popped up. It’s something I still cherish.”

Lanning just wrapped up his second season with the Ducks and has compiled a 22-5 record in two years in Eugene.

Before getting his opportunity as a head coach at Oregon he learned from several other excellent leaders, with Nick Saban being one of them. Lanning was a grad assistant under Saban in 2015. That season helped shape his future.

“Working for Nick, that was the most influential year of my career,” Lanning said. “I got to work with Nick, Kirby [Smart], Lane [Kiffin], Mario [Cristobal], Mel Tucker, Billy Napier. I mean it was an all-star staff of people I got to be associated with. I felt like I got my doctorate in college football that year.”

Dan Lanning discusses being connected to Alabama opening, what it means for Oregon

Shortly after the football world was stunned by the retirement of longtime Alabama head coach Nick Saban on Wednesday, rumors regarding who would take over as the Crimson Tide head coach began to circulate.

Oregon head coach Dan Lanning found himself at the forefront of that conversation, with many tabbing him as a frontrunner to become Alabama’s next head coach. But Lanning quickly shut that down, revealing to his team and the world on Thursday morning that he wasn’t going anywhere and that he’d be staying in Eugene.

Lanning joined the ‘Pat McAfee Show’ on Thursday and was asked about the Alabama situation, revealing what he believes having his name attached to the Crimson Tide job says about himself and the Ducks’ program.

“I think getting your name put in the conversation speaks to what we’re doing right here right now. But yeah, this decision’s been made for me since I took this job,” Lanning said. “I love what we have here, I love the support, the administration I have. I mean we’ve got the things built to where we can be that team and we just gotta continue to take steps in that direction to get where we want to be.”