Time For Dan the Man to Prove That He Can

Three thoughts of mine as we start the season…

1) Dan Lanning’s Defense

Dan Lanning was brought in as a defensive mastermind who trained under the tutelage of Kirby Smart and guided those tremendous Georgia/SEC defensive squads. Lanning spent his first two years building up his roster to be in a position to possibly be great. By 2024, the Oregon defense was outstanding all season long, until it was not.

Oregon’s defense went from very good to mediocre during the final two games of the year. They pulled out the win in a shootout against Penn State in The B1G Championship Game. But, then, there was The Reaming at the Rose Bowl.

Lanning needs to deliver on a consistent, high-end (not necessarily “great”) defense in 2025, or folks like me will start thinking it was all just Smart at Georgia. And, he would have to consider replacing all-world recruiter Tosh Lupoi as the defensive coordinator, as the prevailing thought is he is a better recruiter than coach. If the Ducks’ defense fails this year, he will need to go out and find a DC who is a great coach first, recruiter second.

2) Dante Moore (Quarterback Play)

In the old days, when a program lost its stud quarterback to graduation, you had your fingers crossed all offseason that his former backup — aka the guy who was being groomed to take over — would pan out.

I remember heading into the 1987 season, the Ducks had to replace legend Chris Miller, and there was no heir apparent. All his backups were, well, turds (sorry Pete Nelson). Everyone expected the Ducks to take a big step backward, as they did in 1981 after the departure of Reggie Ogburn (sorry Kevin Lusk). So, out of “desperation,” Rich Brooks turned to a skinny freshman quarterback named Bill Musgrave, and the rest is history.

Will the Oregon defense be top-tier? (Photo by Craig Strobeck)

There is really nothing here to say—just an excuse for me to stroll down memory lane. Obviously, if the Ducks are going to accomplish big things this year, they need solid quarterback play. Which, odds are, will come from Dante Moore. Enough said.

3) Can the Ducks Peak Down the Stretch (i.e. not like last season)?

In the new world of college football, the key is to play your best ball at the end of the season/playoffs. You can lose two (maybe three) games, as Ohio State did last year, and still win the whole darn thing. Dare I say, like the NFL.

In the old world of college football (just two years ago), if you had championship aspirations, you had to first look at your regular season schedule to see if you could run the table, or maybe finish with just one loss. Then, you had to size up your potential opposition in a conference championship game, and then, and only then, were you allowed to worry about peaking down the stretch.

Obviously, the Ducks did not Save the Best for Last (hello Vanessa Williams, call me). It probably would have been better, as many argued, if the Ducks had lost the B1G Championship Game. Get refocused, get a home game, and not have the rust as Ohio State clearly did not on their path to winning it all.