Appreciative Of His Opportunity, Lanning Ready To Get To Work
12/12/21 | Football, @GoDucksMoseley
New UO football head coach Dan Lanning arrived in Eugene on Sunday to meet the team for the first time.
Rain fell in the Eugene area at times Sunday, but on a landmark day for the Oregon football program, even Mother Nature got on board.
As the charter plane carrying new UO football head coach Dan Lanning and his family was beginning its descent into Eugene's Mahlon Sweet Field, the drizzle let up and a rainbow emerged. The plane touched down at 11:54 a.m. PT, and not a single raindrop fell until Lanning, his wife and their three children were in an SUV, on the way to the Hatfield-Dowlin Complex.
Over the next few hours, Lanning toured the facilities, met with Oregon's current staff, watched the team begin its preparations for the Alamo Bowl and then met with as many players as he could, late into the night. His first address to the full team took place around 2:40 p.m., after the Ducks' light workout in their return to training after a week off for final exams.
"This is like Christmas Day for me, fellas; I'm just telling you, I feel like the luckiest man on Earth," Lanning told the team. "I chose this place. And I'm lucky enough it chose me back."
Less than 24 hours after UO director of athletics Rob Mullens announced the hiring of Lanning, who will finish out a three-year tenure as Georgia's defensive coordinator in this year's College Football Playoff, the new UO head coach was putting down roots in his new home. Lanning departed from Athens, Ga., early Sunday with his wife, Sauphia, and their three sons: Caden, Kniles and Titan. By the time they finally descended the steps of the jet in Eugene a few hours later, the boys were each sporting an Oregon Athletics backpack.
Their first stop upon arriving at Oregon's facilities was the first floor of the Hatfield-Dowlin Complex. Anyone ascending from the underground parking garage to the first floor is immediately met with a large trophy case honoring titles and bowl victories earned in the past by the Ducks. But the Lanning family quickly turned its gaze to the right, and the display featuring Marcus Mariota's 2014 Heisman Trophy.
"What do you think, fellas?" Lanning asked Cade, Kniles and Titan. "Pretty cool, huh?"
A few hours later, it was another prominent UO alum, former running back Dino Philyaw, who was the caterer for the BBQ meal the Ducks enjoyed following their first bowl workout. Lanning joined the team for the meal following his remarks to them, grabbing a plate and slipping into the buffet line behind Aaron Smith, a running back on Oregon's developmental squad.
His plate filled, Lanning took a seat in the HDC dining hall across from another scout-team running back, Renoldo Spivey Jr. It took a moment, but soon more players joined them at the table – outside linebacker Brandon Buckner sliding into a chair next to Lanning, with fellow true freshman edge defender Terrell Tilmon taking the seat across from Buckner.
So began the process for those two players of connecting with their new head coach. A few minutes earlier, "connection" had been a theme of Lanning's remarks to the full team, inside the Moshofsky Center.
"I want an opportunity to earn your trust," Lanning told the Ducks. "I want an opportunity to earn your love. If we connect, we can do something really special here."
Lanning promised the players honesty – even when the truth hurts – and fairness, and consistency. He said he would always act in the best interest of the Oregon football program.
And that, he added, meant acting in the best interest of players: "You make this thing tick," Lanning said.
Lanning, who has helped make Georgia's defense arguably the best unit in all of college football the past three years, told the Ducks they will play "championship-level defense … but that doesn't mean we aren't going to air it out on offense."
The Ducks will hold their first full practice Monday for the Dec. 29 Alamo Bowl in San Antonio. Two days after that game, Lanning will be on the sideline when Georgia plays its College Football Playoff semifinal against Michigan. So Lanning was intent on beginning to build as many deep connections as possible with current UO players while in Eugene until Tuesday – and he doesn't want that process to end then.
"I'm a phone call away," he said, adding later, "If you reach out to me, I don't care if it's two in the morning, I'm gonna reach back out to you."
Had it been too late for him? "Oh, we're good man," Lanning said with a chuckle.
On his way to the dining hall, after the Ducks' workout, Lanning passed by Oregon's equipment room.
"I bet this is a hit on visits," he said, having seen photos on social media of recruits in previous classes sitting in the equipment room's one-of-a-kind throne.
That's just one of the countless presents Lanning got to unwrap Sunday, as the new UO football coach began the process of taking the helm of the program.
"A week ago, I was dreaming of a place like this," Lanning had said in his remarks to the team. "And I'm going to treasure it."
