The University of Oregon will be an official member of the Big Ten Conference on August 2, 2024 and Dan Lanning is ready for what lies ahead. He made some bold claims about the future of his program during a recent appearance on The Ryen Russillo Podcast.
First and foremost, the third-year head football coach looks at some of the challenges that come with such a significant transition with excitement. Lanning looks forward to facing all of the unique differences between the Pac-12 and Big Ten head-on. Especially when it comes to the style of play.
I think the challenge in front of us is a lot of fun, and I don’t think anybody gets in this profession and says, “give me the easy road.” Being in a conference that has a competitive nature, that has really good football, that plays a physical brand of football— that’s something I’m excited about.
— Dan Lanning, via The Ryen Russillo Podcast
One of the biggest pushbacks to adding a school located in the Pacific Northwest to a conference that is primarily based out of the Midwest and East Coast has to do with travel. These athletes are going to be on a plane, a lot, for conference matchups. They will have to cross multiple time zones to play Maryland, for example.
Lanning understands that the logistics of away games are going to be different.
However, he and the athletic department in Eugene are preparing for the change. Plus, not every away game will require a six-hour flight and the Ducks are used to traveling longer distances at this point.
There’s going to be some things that are different about the Big Ten. I have to do some studies on travel, what travel will look like, and how that might be different, but there isn’t as much travel as most people think. We travel a good amount in the league we were just in […]
We’re going to L.A. for an away game. That’s very similar to what we’ve done last year. So, that’s something that I need to be able to assess and look at differently.
— Dan Lanning, via The Ryen Russillo Podcast
Lanning actually believes that the current Big Ten college football teams will have to adjust to Oregon more than Oregon will have to adjust to the Big Ten. His comments appeared to encompass both the logistics, as well as the on-field play.
I think, at the end of the day, the Big Ten’s going to have to prepare for us and what we do different for that league.
— Dan Lanning, via The Ryen Russillo Podcast
And then he took aim at the Big-12 and the ACC.
I’m glad to be in one of the two conferences in college football that are elite. I’m glad to be able to go and play some of the elite teams. You look at the national championship and that was two Big Ten teams that were squaring off.
— Dan Lanning, via The Ryen Russillo Podcast
Pow pow! Shots fired!
Technically, Lanning could be referring to the Big Ten and ACC or Big Ten and Big-12 as the two elite conferences. He did not clarify which two he meant, but it’s hard to imagine that the second is not the SEC. Especially considering his background at Georgia.
Will Oregon be able to continue its success in the Big Ten? We’ll find out with time!
Dan Lanning is confident in what he is building. Clearly.