Oregon’s 2026 season might end without a Big Ten title or a College Football Playoff berth, but Dan Lanning’s coaching job this year is already being called his career-best. Despite significant shortcomings, Lanning navigating a quarterback crisis, making a major staff change, and then pulling off a shocking upset over Ohio State is redefining his reputation.
Defying the Critics
Critics have consistently knocked Lanning since his Oregon debut in 2022, a 49-3 decimation by Georgia, saying he’s a fantastic recruiter and motivator, but not a true game-day coach. They claimed his teams often fell short in the biggest matchups, unable to simply out-talent the opposition. So, how do you explain Oregon’s current 6-3 record after they beat Ohio State 41-28 in The Horseshoe on Saturday? That’s the question Lanning’s performance this season forces everyone to answer.
A Season On the Brink
Everything that could possibly go wrong for the Ducks this year seemed to go wrong. The season kicked off with a too-close win against Boise State, where the team looked like they’d believed their own hype. A shocking upset loss to Oklahoma State followed a week later. Early concerns about both new offensive and defensive coordinators, who were internal promotions instead of big-name hires, seemed spot on as both units struggled.
Things looked to truly spiral two weeks after the Oklahoma State loss. Quarterback Dante Moore took a brutal hit sliding against USC and was knocked out of the game, out for the rest of the year. The Ducks rallied to win that one without him, but the QB carousel had begun. In his first start, Dylan Raiola, a high-priced transfer brought in to back up Moore, threw seven turnovers in a tight 17-15 home loss to UCLA. That disastrous performance led to Raiola being benched for Brock Thomas. Thomas then struggled immensely a week later against Nebraska, only for Raiola to come back in and lead a game-winning fourth-quarter drive.
Just when it seemed things had finally settled and the Ducks, now 4-2, had everything to play for, they went on the road. They faced an Illinois team forced to start a true freshman QB due to their own injuries, and Illinois won. Oregon suffered their third loss of the season before the end of October. It was a perilous situation.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by CBS Sports.
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