Dan Lanning addresses what comes next for him at Oregon

Dan Lanning and Oregon made it to the New Year’s Six but ultimately fell short of a Pac-12 title and the College Football Playoff.

What’s next for Lanning with the Ducks? It seems like it’s just constant improvement. Not to mention, Oregon is one of four Pac-12 teams heading to the Big Ten this year.

Following a Fiesta Bowl victory over Liberty, Lanning took a peek into the future.

“Well you know the great thing about football as every team has an individual identity in itself,” Lanning said. “And you know what these guys built, they created, you know, legacy and created a tradition about you know, what we expect and our standard of play. But the reality is it has nothing to do with next season. 

“So it’s going to be about this next group. Going back to the fundamentals and starting from scratch, starting from zero and figuring out exactly what we have, but they certainly put the building blocks down for what it means to be an Oregon football player and an Oregon football team.”

Dan Lanning confident in future at Oregon

Lanning definitely wants Oregon to have a certain identity. While the Ducks move to the Big Ten, he’s confident about the legacy the program left in the Pac-12.

“I think Oregon cemented itself as a premier program in college football,” Lanning said. “And I’ll say, more than anything, certainly grateful for some of the great games that exist in the Pac.”

Along with USC, UCLA, and Washington, Oregon moves to the Big Ten conference ahead of the 2024 season. It’s part of several changes in conference alignment, which leaves the Pac-12 with just two remaining schools, Oregon State and Washington State.

For Lanning, looking forward to that future is what’s important right now.

“But probably just as excited about what’s happening in the future for us, where we’re headed, the direction we’re headed. The clarity, what that brings,” Lanning said. “That’s really a credit to our administration, Rob Mullens, and the people around us that have put us in that position.”

Oregon football may not have any national championships, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have a long history within the Pac-12. That includes 12 conference titles in the conference for football. Eight of those conference championships came in the 21st century, showing just how much the program has grown in recent years.