'I think we have a program that could be the best in the nation'; Dan Lanning details decision to stay at Oregon
After 19 hours of rumors, speculation, and flight-tracking, Dan Lanning made it abundantly clear Thursday morning that he has no intention of leaving Oregon.
Lanning immediately emerged as a top candidate to replace Nick Saban after news broke Wednesday that legendary Alabama head coach Nick Saban was retiring. Brett McMurphy of Action Network reported that Lanning was expected to be the Crimson Tide’s top target.
But Lanning officially squashed those rumors at 9 a.m. PT Thursday morning with a social media post that featured the caption, ‘The Ducks aren’t going anywhere and I’m not leaving.’
In two seasons at Oregon, the 37-year-old Lanning is 22-5. He led the No. 6 Ducks to a 12-2 finish in 2023 that ended with a blowout win over Liberty in the Fiesta Bowl.
For all the early success he has found in Eugene, though, there was plenty of reason to believe that Lanning might be tempted by one of the top jobs in college football. He served as a graduate assistant under Saban in 2015 and found plenty of success in the SEC while serving as Kirby Smart’s defensive coordinator in Georgia from 2019-21.
So, what went into his decision to stay at Oregon?
“When I think of Oregon I think of innovation,” Lanning said in a Wednesday interview on the Pat McAfee Show. “We all know that college football is changing like crazy right now and we’re ahead of the curve. We’ve got a plan. We’ve got great support. If there’s something I need, I can go ask for it. A lot of things that a lot of coaches are driven by, that’s not really my motivation. It’s one thing: can we win? Can we win at a high level? Can we compete for championships?
“That ability exists here. I think we have a program that could be the best in the nation as long as I keep this thing on track.”
Late Wednesday evening, several reports emerged that Lanning had traveled to Tuscaloosa, presumably to discuss the head coaching role with the Crimson Tide.
That wasn’t the case, though, according to Lanning.
“My 13-year-old, Caden, we had just started watching a Jason Bourne movie,” Lanning recalled. “We were on Jason Bourne and my phone’s blowing up and it’s like, ‘Dad, it says you’re in Tuscaloosa right now.’ It’s like, we’re watching Jason Bourne, focus on the movie. Put the phone on do not disturb. It interrupted what we were in on last night. We’ve got great players that we’re looking to sign. All that became a distraction for sure. You’ve got players on our team reaching out. They know where I’m at — 10 toes down.”
Last summer, Lanning signed a contract extension with UO that raised his annual salary from $4.7 million to $7 million and escalated his buyout to $20 million. The deal runs through Jan. 31, 2029.
This is far from the first time that Lanning has been named as a top coaching candidate for an SEC program. He was reportedly on Auburn’s shortlist in 2022, and he was named as a candidate for Texas A&M earlier this fall.
In both instances, he steadfastly denied the rumors and reaffirmed the notion that he intends to stay at Oregon.
“I think getting your name put in the conversation speaks to what we’re doing right here, right now,” Lanning told McAfee on Thursday.” This decision has been made for me since I took this job. I love what we have here. I love the support; the administration I have. We’ve got the things built to where we could be that team.
“We’ve just got to continue to take steps in that direction to get where we want to be.”
