What Dan Lanning Said at National Signing Day Press Conference

Lanning spoke to the media about some of the latest signees for the 2022 class as well as how the staff has connected throughout this process.

Opening Statement:

"Just extremely excited to be here today. Obviously, it's an exciting day for Duck football. Really pumped about some of the additional pieces we were able to add to our team and to our program today. Got some great guys coming aboard. I think we were able to attack in a short amount of time. I think our coaches did a tremendous job and our support staff did a tremendous job early on, going to identify some needs in our program and some elite players that can come be a part of what we're doing. Very appreciative to all the hard work tha-t's gone in to not just today but the last signing period and kind of falling pieces together. It's a pretty exciting time for us."

On remaining areas to address on roster:

"Certainly still a little fluid. I think we anticipate probably ending up with a couple more guys here today that we're battling for that we feel strong about that we can end up landing. But ultimately, I don't know if there's one position of need because you don't know exactly what position's available if you know what I mean, as things continue to move and shake and shift. I think time will tell kind of what direction we go there."

On handling difficulties of recruiting cycle/de-commitments:

"For us, as a staff it was a challenge but a challenge we welcomed. Oregon is a phenomenal place. We've got the ability to get great players here, and I think people just had to have an opportunity to sit down, listen to us, and realize that we have a genuine group here that care, and we're certainly excited about the group we were able to put together."

On adapting to shifting landscape in college football with NIL and transfer portal:

"I think as a coach and certainly just as somebody that's operating in today's landscape in college football, you have to be willing to adapt and change. Ask questions, right? Don't assume that you know everything. I think we kind of worked through that process together, was able to put a great staff together that sees big picture. I think it starts there, everybody having a similar vision. There's a lot of teams that don't know which direction this'll head and everyone's taking a different approach. I think at the end of the day, you can look at our approach, we're going to look to enhance our program through the transfer portal, but we're also going to spend more time looking to enhance our program through the high school signings, and I don't know if every program is approaching it that same way, but we still want to be able to develop players. But it's going to change year to year. I think we'll continue to adapt our approach as we move forward."

On impact of Justius Lowe and Jordan James:

"First off, I just think they're both really phenomenal human beings and dynamic players. Obviously, Jordan's a guy that I had a relationship with before in my time at Georgia. Also really fortunate enough that Coach Locklyn in his previous job had a relationship with Jordan just in case something like this or an opportunity like this would ever present itself for Coach. So we had strong ties there. But he's a dynamic player. Obviously has the ability to be a one-touch touchdown kind of guy and get the ball down the field. Then Justius, we're gonna battle to keep the best in our state, and we should be able to keep the best in our state. Obviously he's in that category, and I think before the day's over with, people realize that we were able to be really competitive in our state and be able to get guys on board on our team. I'm thrilled about him. More thrilled about what kind of people both of those young men are."

On importance of in-state recruiting:

"I think it's huge. My very first day of recruiting, the very first day I could actually get on the road, I spent that time in Oregon and that time in Portland and in the area. That'll always be a priority for us, and obviously for us we have the ability to go anywhere, and that's a blessing, but we have to win at home first."

On importance of chemistry on staff/if there's been a meeting with the whole staff:

"Yes we have. Obviously early on it was Zooms until obviously finishing the national championship game, and then getting here we were able to have several in-person meetings. I think to share a vision, you guys have to be on the same page. It's kind of been a little bit of a frat house mentality for some of us. We're staying in the same house for a while here while our families get adjusted and get acclimated to the area. For us, football doesn't stop. It's seven at night, it's going into the wee hours of the night drawing up plays, watching film in the basement, been really fortunate to be able to talk ball. They were drawing plays on a mirror last night in the house, so it's been a lot of fun connecting with the staff. Just like I talked about connection with our players, connection with our staff is really, really important, so I've been thrilled with that progress."

On addition of Andrew Boyle and Jordon Riley:

"I wish I could talk in more depth on some of those guys, but right now, I'm not able to speak in depth on that."

On adding speedy guys in secondary:

"I think we have signed nine guys that have a track and field background. We signed five guys that run under a 10.7 100, which for us on defense, the way we play and the brand of football we're gonna play, it's really, really important. In fact, we have a couple guys coming in that are going to be able to compete in track as well. I know I was excited on signing day, but I think Coach [Robert] Johnson was just as excited, so that fires me up. The game is about speed. We got to be able to run and hit and tackle and catch and block, all those things matter, but speed's one thing that's hard to change, and we have some guys coming in that can do that."

On guys that are considering playing track at Oregon:

"I'm not gonna hop into that, but I can promise you I can't run a 10.7, so we got some fast guys though, man. I don't think you have to do too deep of a dive. Like Khamari Terrell is one that comes to mind. He can scoot. We've got a couple that we've added. Definitely some additional pieces, got a couple linebackers coming in that can really run. But yeah it's just a good group in general."

On importance of getting Jahlil Florence back and impact of getting Terrell:

"Obviously, Khamari, Jahlil, and Jalil [Tucker], we're really, really excited about there in the secondary. All those guys have a track background and speed. They're just great humans. I think they all wanted an opportunity to be able to sit and visit with us and spend some time with us. I think I'm just as excited about what kind of character they have beyond just what they are as players. One thing they all have in common, they're all long. They all have great speed. So those are big pieces for us moving forward."

On making up ground in 2023 and 2024:

"We'll be aggressive in our approach moving forward. We've already been able to have a couple guys on campus with the unofficial period this past month. We'll definitely attack that coming in March. One of the biggest things that we can do is the fan base and our staff is focused on getting guys here for April 23 at 1 p.m. for our spring game. We need to pack the crowd, make Autzen the experience we know it can be. That's one of the big pieces moving forward, and then just getting more of these guys on the phone, on campus, on Zooms. That's where we'll attack moving forward."

On recruiting efforts in Texas:

"I think it's a little bit year to year. We want to go attack the players that we think fit us and organizationally wherever they're at. Sometimes that's gonna be Texas and sometimes it'll be more in Texas than others. But we have strong ties there on our staff certainly, just like we do on the West Coast, in the Pacific Northwest. It'll definitely be a place that we always have a footprint, and we're going to attack. I just don't know what that number will be like year in and year out."

On Coach Locklyn and his mentality:

"Coach Lock is a guy that I first got to meet when I was at Memphis. Obviously, just really excited whenever we got the opportunity to bring him here. I feel like he got it out the mud, man. This guy grinded and worked for everything he got. He started off as a volunteer, I look over one day, he's wearing a T-shirt, he's out there on the field and I'm not sure exactly where he came from. I have an appreciation for guys like that that didn't get it with a spoon in their mouth. He cares deeply for his players. Obviously has some familiarity with the position playing it. But whenever I was able to talk to guys that he helped mentor and put in the league there from his time at Memphis and coaching, it's really apparent the impact he had on those players. That's something that stuck out to me and our staff bringing Lock in here, and I'm thrilled he's part of what we're doing."

On Marshall Malchow as football Chief of Staff:

"He's a stud. First off, you want to surround yourself with great people, people that you enjoy being around. Marshall and I got to work together at Georgia. It was apparent to me really early that Marshall is elite at his job. Great with relationships, serious, big-picture vision that I look for. He'll be our chief of staff here, so kind of work hand-in-hand in all facets of the program. Obviously having him involved in personnel and recruiting, but kind of a guy that I can bounce ideas off day to day. Definitely a big piece of what we want to do here, and somebody I knew that I immediately wanted to target when I got the job."

On when spring football begins/which guys that signed today are involved/philosophy on early enrollees:

"We don't have an exact number yet. Kind of still going through that process as far as who will be joining us. Obviously we crank up in mid-March, and then we'll have a little bit of spring break there and then finish up through the end of April. But I like it getting guys here as quick as I can, but I want to fit within their high school experience and then finish it up the way they have to be able to finish up there. I do think that's a case by case basis as well. They have to be prepared for the rigors of college. They have to be ready to go attack it. We want to get as many here as quick as we can so they can get acclimated at school, be a part of learning our system and how we operate and what we do."

On transfer portal impacting upcoming classes:

"I think it's changed the game in a lot of ways, not just for us at Oregon but in college football. You can see it. I think there's less high school players being recruited at times. That can be an advantage for us because we're going to be aggressive in recruiting high school players. I think teams can change their rosters quickly. It's a little bit of a balancing act. I don't know that we'll completely know the entire impact until we sit here four years from now and we kind of do an analysis of what it's looked like. For us, again we're going to continue to evaluate. I'm not going to have a hard stance one way or the other until we know how it benefits us and impacts us."

On adding Jordan James/adding more scholarship running backs:

"I'm pretty jacked to get Jordan. I'm certainly pumped about him. I think that we can be creative in our approach. We have some talent at other positions obviously on our roster on offense, and we'll use guys in a variety of ways, even if that means putting a wideout in the backfield, moving people around. I think we can do that here. We're always gonna look to enhance the backfield. I feel really great about the guys that we have in that group right now. Jordan obviously enhances that moving forward."

On up-tempo, pro-style offensive philosophy:

"It has to be a weapon for us. I also think that sometimes those numbers get skewed a little bit, just like if we're in a game and we're doing really well, that pace is going to change potentially down the stretch. If a game is at hand or if you're scoring quickly, that doesn't always equate to 80 plays. But I know how uncomfortable it can make a defense, and we want to be able to do that in this league. There's two things that I think people don't realize - it's one thing to go fast, and it's another thing to be fast and efficient. And we want to be fast and efficient. We don't want to just be fast. That's something that obviously Coach Dillingham has great experience in his past as a coordinator and in system, so I'm excited to see him carry it over here and see how it fits us."

On importance of attacking the trenches in this class with guys like Ben Roberts and Sir Mells:

"I think size and speed is a premium. A lot of people have asked me what's the difference in places I've been in the past, and I think the D-lines are one of those places where it starts. You have to win the game at the line of scrimmage. Period. That's football. So adding those guys, those guys are going to be pieces of the puzzle for us moving forward. They can certainly enhance our ability to be effective at that spot. The defenses that I've been apart of that have been strong have good D-linemen and play good along the defensive front."

On exploring Oregon and learning more about the town and school:

"The love for the program is so strong. I've been so impressed. I spent some time Monday night with the alumni base and former players. Hearing their passion for our program and how much they love Oregon has really stood out to me. We got an opportunity to hang out with Haloti Ngata this past weekend and Kenjon Barner. These guys have big hearts. They care about Oregon. To be there with a guy that's won Super Bowls and he's offering to give you a ride or show up to a dinner or just be around, that means the world to me. I'm excited about that. That's certainly been a welcome surprise.

You may also like:

2022 National Signing Day Tracker

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