Notable Quotes From Dan Lanning After Oregon's Sixth Practice of Fall Camp

On Tuesday Oregon held its sixth practice of fall camp inside Autzen Stadium as Dan Lanning and the rest of the coaching staff search for clarity on a team that replaces more than 15 starters from a year ago.

The Ducks’ head coach met with reporters in Eugene following practice and below you’ll find some of his most notable quotes.

---

Opening Statement: “Some real positives so far through fall camp. Really competitive practice today. Finished out with some red area. Offense got the upper in that, in goal line. Some explosive plays showing up. Haven’t seen a lot of those so far through fall camp. Saw some today, which is a real positive. Defense doing a great job attacking the ball.“

On Ify Obidegwu‘s development

Lanning: “More than anything, understanding. Knowing what he’s gotta do, how he needs to be able to execute on the field. What his job is. But yeah, he has really special traits. He could be a special player for us.”

On what he likes about tight end room beyond Kenyon Sadiq

Lanning: “Really pleased with the progress. Obviously Roger (Saleapaga) was a guy that could help us last year and then was injured. But he’s come back really well from that injury. And Jamari’s a guy that has experience at other places and we recruited out of high school. We’re really high on him as a player and he’s done really well so far in fall camp. And then several other guys there that are really coming along. So like that group.”

On how new court ruling for Daylen Austin will impact reps moving forward

Lanning: “We have a plan in place. We’ll adjust.”

On what Jamari Johnson brings to the table, importance of adding a guy like him

Lanning: “It was more about just adding a player that we thought added value. And Jamari certainly adds value. He’s got length, he’s a big body, catches the ball really well. I think there’s a pickup that he has to continue to figure out, like what are we doing in the offense. And as he picks it up he takes great steps forward. His size, his athleticism is unique for that position.”

On what he learned from “That team out West” documentary series last year

Lanning: “We have unbelievable fans. There’s players that we’re trying to attract to this program. I think it gives them an inside glimpse at the day-to-day operation, what we do here. What it looks like. So I think it’s just a great way to share what’s Oregon Football about with other people. There’s some great players and great people on our team that their story needs to be shared. It gives an opportunity to share those stories.”

On what he’s seen from quarterbacks with regard to Stein’s take what the defense gives you mindset

Lanning: “Some of our explosives weren’t necessarily shots down the field. Some of those explosives today were explosive runs. That’s credit to the O-line and the backs doing a great job. Taking advantage of opportunities. Every defense has a strength, every defense has a weakness, same with offense. When you really can become a separator is when things are equal. When they have a good call, you have a good call and it’s a one-on-one matchup. Who’s gonna go win that matchup? So all those things add up timing, getting in a rhythm, they all matter when it comes to explosive plays.”

On Ashton Porter and Blake Purchase

Lanning: “Ashton, what has he done? That guy’s worked his tail off and done an unbelievable job of working extremely hard to become a guy that can make an impact for us. Knowing his job, his assignment and I think he would tell you that early on in his career it took him a while to learn what he had to be able to do here. His body’s gotten stronger, he’s become a dynamic player that can play at multiple positions for us. Same thing with Blake. Blake came in with great athleticism, but his strength has really improved. His understanding of the system has really improved and he’s put himself in position where he’s gonna have a role for us, and a big role at that.”

On defensive line competition

Lanning: “We’ve done a better job with gap control. We’ve done a better job with movement. So there’s been some real positive there. We’re creating havoc for the quarterback, which is a real positive with those guys.”

On when he looks for consistency to start to build the depth chart

Lanning: “Probably after our second scrimmage. You still have plenty of time before our first game. So we’ll have a scrimmage this weekend. We’ll have a scrimmage that next weekend. As we go into that second scrimmage there’ll be some pieces of the puzzle we want in certain spots. But there’s still a lot of competition to be had. Still a lot of guys we gotta evaluate where they’re at from a winning football standpoint.”