Dan Lanning doubles down on Oregon with extension: 'I have everything I want here'
Dan Lanning might have a couple of bruises in random places next time you run into him. Don’t worry. They’re sort of like badges, a sign of the team-building he’s doing right now. On Sunday, he and his coaching staff took the Ducks out to play paintball.
“I was a popular target,” Lanning told reporters on Monday. “I took some good hits”
Added offensive lineman Steven Jones: “That helps a lot of young players, to see Coach involved in activities like that, rather than just sitting on the side. If you really want to connect and grow with each other, then you’ve got to be in it together. And he’s showing that.”
He’s showing it in other ways, too. In a very literal way, Lanning is putting his money where his mouth is when it comes to his commitment to this Oregon football program.
Last week, the Ducks announced a contract extension for Lanning after just one year in Eugene. Throughout Year 1, Lanning was briefly linked to the Auburn head coaching job and speculation about Oregon’s ability to attract and retain high-level coaches ran a bit too wild. But time and time again he reiterated that Oregon was where he wanted to be.
The Ducks, Lanning feels, have everything necessary to win at an elite level.
The 37-year-old coach’s extension adds just a year — keeping him through 2028 — but it gives him a significant bump in pay. Over the next six years, Lanning is reportedly set to make $45 million. He’s being paid with the Pac-12’s best.
But Lanning also agreed to a $20 million buyout should he leave for another school. The buyout sits at $20 million for the duration of his deal. If another school wants to bring him in, it’ll have to pay to fire its coach and then pay Oregon a hefty price tag just to have the option to pay Lanning a truckload of money.
“As a coach, all you ever really want to focus on is being in a place where you can win and you can raise your family,” Lanning said. “Since the day I got here, it’s been no secret that I want to be here. I’m thrilled about the opportunity that was given to me to become the head coach at Oregon. That means a lot to me. I never take it for granted. I wake up every morning and I pinch myself.”
Lanning mentioned all the moving and the toll that takes on his children — he and his wife, Sauphia, have three boys. Planting roots in Eugene lets his sons build relationships at their school as well.
But Lanning wouldn’t be the first or last coach to publicly say he wants to stay in a place and then turn around and leave.
Lanning was asked directly why fans should believe him.
“You got $20 million?” he quipped back. “It is not fair in college football, in my opinion, when a university makes a commitment to a coach but a coach doesn’t make a commitment to that university. I want to be here. Believe or not believe whatever you want. There’s no secret. This is what I want.
“I’ve said before the grass isn’t always greener. Like, I have everything I want here. There’s a vision for this to continue to grow. We’re able to get elite players, I think that’s no secret. As long as we can continue to recruit at a high level, develop, and continue to have world-class facilities, continue to push the bar in everything that we do, everything’s here that’s necessary for us to be successful.
“It’s something I want to sign up for, not something I shy away from.”