Former college football coach regrets letting Dan Lanning get a new job

Oregon Ducks coach Dan Lanning is widely considered to be an up-and-coming coach in college football. Coach Lanning worked his way up from assistant and recruiting coordinator to head coach at the University of Oregon at several different positions, including Arizona State under coach Todd Graham.

While at Arizona State as an assistant and recruiting coordinator, Coach Lanning was offered a position as defensive backs coach at Sam Houston State. Coach Graham did not offer him the position at Arizona State and Coach Lanning left the team. Coach Graham now realizes he made a huge mistake.

Todd Graham regrets not keeping Lanning

Former Arizona State football coach Todd Graham admitted earlier this week that he regrets not retaining Lanning. Lanning served as an assistant under Graham at Arizona State in 2012 and recruiting coordinator in 2013. The following season, Lanning was hired as the defensive backs coach at Sam Houston State, ending his time at ASU under Graham.

Although he gave Lanning credit for improving the Sun Devils' defense, Graham let him go.

“The dumbest thing I ever did was let him do that (go),” Graham told ESPN. “I should have fired someone and hired him.”

Graham, who was fired from Arizona State in 2017, said if he had kept Lanning on his coaching staff, he would not have been fired.

The rise of Dan Lanning

Between his time at Arizona State and Oregon State, Lanning made stops at Sam Houston State, Alabama, Memphis and Georgia. After rising from assistant to defensive backs coach and then linebackers coach, Lanning landed his first job as Georgia's defensive coordinator in 2019. He became a household name when he led Georgia's defense to one of its most dominant seasons ever during the 2021-2022 season, capping that season with a win over Alabama and a national championship.

Lanning is now in the key position at Oregon and he is making the most of it. In both years at the helm, Oregon finished the season in the thick of the playoff race with a 22-5 record and two bowl game wins.

The future looks even brighter. Oregon is expected to face Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State atop the Big Ten in its first year in the conference. Expectations are high for the 2024-25 Ducks.

“Lanning is a great coach and cares about his players,” Oregon senior linebacker Bryce Boettcher told Bri Amaranthus of Oregon SI. “He has this, I don't want to say psychotic, but almost psychotic side to him that makes him so fun to be around.”

“When he coaches you, he always has that look in his eyes that says he’s ready for anything,” Boettcher said.

Another accomplishment for Lanning was that he stayed at Oregon despite the Alabama head coaching position becoming vacant following the departure of coach Nick Saban. He has made it very clear that he wants to stay at Oregon for the long haul, which is refreshing for Duck fans. Oregon has had head coaches poached consistently over the past 10-15 years. Now they know they have their man. The offseason has been very successful for the Ducks. Now it's time to show it on the field, starting in Week 1 on August 31 against the Idaho Vandals at Autzen Stadium.