Dan Lanning brings together 'best parts' from time with Kirby Smart, Nick Saban, Mike Norvell

The Oregon Ducks appear to have one of the next great head coaches in college football with Dan Lanning leading the program. That early success he’s had there has, in large part, been thanks to the coaches who have influenced him.

During an appearance on Andy Staples On3, Justin Hopkins of ScoopDuck broke down those influences, like Kirby Smart, Nick Saban, and Mike Norvell, explaining how he brings together the best part of them.

“He’s really kind of brought the best parts all together,” Hopkins said. “I think when I look at Dan Lanning and maybe I catch him at a private setting or somewhere where the cameras aren’t on and all that, he really reminds me of a combination of Kirby Smart, Nick Saban, and Mike Norvell.”

Dan Lanning got into coaching at the college level in 2011. At the time, he was a GA for Pitt. By 2015, he had made it to Alabama as a GA under Saban. He later parlayed that into a defensive assistant role at Memphis under Norvell. After that, he made the jump to Georgia under Smart, where he became the defensive coordinator and helped the Bulldogs win a national championship.

“What I mean by that is Nick Saban is a grinder, worker, I mean an incredible coach. One of the best ever to do it, but he’s not super personable. Mike Norvell, kind of a rising star still, even though he’s a little bit more aligned than maybe Lanning is now. Super personable guy. Really smart. You look at Lanning and you’re kind of like both of them because Lanning is a hoot, man. He’s a guy who’ll remember stuff. Like, how do you remember that? He’s just got all of that,” Hopkins said.

“Then I mentioned Kirby Smart. Kirby is obviously one of the top defensive minds and just a recruiting monster, not that Nick Saban wasn’t, and you just look at it and Lanning is really like all three combined.”

Dan Lanning took over the Oregon program ahead of the 2022 season. He immediately found success, going 22-5 over his first two seasons coaching the Ducks. That included a pair of top-25 finishes and a Fiesta Bowl win.

A key reason why Lanning has been so successful is his ability to bring in talent through both high school recruiting and the Transfer Portal. It’s another key that he learned while coaching under those other excellent coaches and is culminating with the 2025 class that he’s currently putting together. As of now, the Ducks have the third-ranked class in the 2025 cycle, with three five-star recruits.

Now, Dan Lanning is looking to help Oregon through a new challenge as the Ducks transition to the Big Ten in 2024.