Dan Lanning Talks Washington, Recent Bye Week
Oregon Ducks coach Dan Lanning spoke with media Monday following the team’s week 13 bye and addressed some of Washington’s impact players, what the team did with its time, and more. Below are the most notable questions and quotes from Lanning’s interview as well as my thoughts at the end.
Opening Statement:
“I hope our fans are excited to make an impact. This will be a fun game for us and we just had our first practice here today kind of hopping into Washington prep. Certainly a team that has some talent and a really well-coached team.”
On what he remembers from facing coach Jedd Fisch in the past:
“They’ve always done a good job of adapting to the personnel they have and causing stress. It’s a little different here but they certainly make an impact.”
On the threat running back Jonah Coleman presents:
“This is as talented a back as we’ve seen aside from (Ashton) Jeanty. He breaks more tackles than anyone we’ve seen as well. He’s a great one-cut runner and a really talented player.”
On the challenge of preparing for Washington’s two-QB system:
“This is a team that’s played multiple guys throughout the season so I don’t know that it presents a huge challenge but we’re certainly going to prepare for both.”
On how the team approached and spent its bye week:
“We started by looking at ourselves and finding ways to lean into our strengths then getting our legs back and getting into the weight room as well. We’ve seen a lot of good numbers in the past week.”
On extra motivation from recent games against the Huskies:
“Motivation is overrated. It’s always about performance and what we can do on the field. Our guys have to want to execute at a high level. This is our opportunity to play our best football against a good team.”
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On the significance of this game for Washington transfer cornerback Jabbar Muhammad:
“I’m sure it means a ton and in fact I know it means a ton but it’s more about executing than anything else.”
On recruiting efforts over the bye week:
“I think regardless of when it is it’s about taking advantage of the time allotted to you. There’s some chaos right now in where things fall and things have changed a lot so we don’t want to let that opportunity pass by.”
Linden’s Take
I thought Lanning’s answers and overall demeanor suggested a pretty high level of confidence for this game. He didn’t seem especially concerned about the multiplicity of Washington’s quarterback room and cited “some” talent on the Huskies roster.
I personally agree as this Washington team isn’t anywhere in the vicinity of the caliber last year’s was. I expect Oregon to come out with some ferocity and put this one in the books early in the hopes of getting some younger players reps in the second half and keeping starters fresh for the Big Ten Conference Championship game next week.
Oregon hasn’t necessarily been in positions to be able to do that in many games this year so it’ll be something to monitor. I thought his answer on the recruiting side was interesting as he acknowledged the pandemonium that is the college football recruiting landscape in 2024 and stressed the need to take matters into the program’s hands.
