Oregon coach Dan Lanning has immediately vaulted to the top of the list when it comes to potential candidates replacing Nick Saban at Alabama. Lanning spent some time in Tuscaloosa and has brought the Ducks back to national prominence as they prepare to move to the Big Ten next season.
It’s not just wishful thinking and topping the betting odds though. One local reporter in Eugene definitively stated that Lanning was in Tuscaloosa yesterday.
However, in a video posted to the social media platform X, Lanning said as clearly as he possibly could that he wasn’t going anywhere. Overlaid over Lanning speaking glowingly about having everything he could want at Oregon is written out, “If you’re scared your coach is leaving, then come play for us. And I’m not leaving.” It then ends with Lanning smoking a cigar.
— Dan Lanning (@CoachDanLanning) January 11, 2024
Odds are that Lanning didn’t post that video while sitting in an Alabama airport.
Lanning has spoken openly about his affinity for Oregon as his name has been linked with potential big-money jobs before, like Texas A&M. With new membership in the Big Ten and the support of Nike behind him, (“The grass is damn green in Eugene” as Lanning says in the video is perfect to run as a new slogan for the program) Lanning clearly feels like Oregon is a destination and not just a pit stop on the journey. And Alabama will have to cross him off the list of coaching candidates to follow Saban.
