“The grass is damn green in Eugene.”
That’s what coach Dan Lanning said in January of 2024 amidst rumors that he was a strong candidate for the job at Alabama. Now just over a year later Lanning has a new deal that will keep him in Eugene and get him a significant pay increase.
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The University of Oregon has reportedly agreed to a new six-year deal that pays him $11 million annually - a $2 million a year raise. The deal, which still requires board approval, would make Lanning a top-five coach nationally in salary, and keeps his buyout at $20 million.
That buyout number is important because because new contract or not, Lanning always seems to be linked to jobs around college football and the NFL.
That’s the price of success.
There is another price that comes with becoming a top-five coach in salary: expectations.
Lanning has been great at Oregon during his time there. The team is 35-6 during his tenure. The Ducks spent a chunk of last season as the No. 1 team in the country. Lanning led the Ducks to a Big Ten championship in their first season in the conference.
Recruiting has been outstanding because of Lanning, his relentless staff and NIL. The program has had three straight top-10 finishes in the Rivals team recruiting rankings. Oregon is a threat to land any elite transfer portal player and they’ve supplemented the program well through the portal.
The bar has been raised in Eugene thanks to Lanning.
But now it’s time to get over the hump and win a national championship.
We don’t measure the success of Ryan Day, Kirby Smart, Dabo Swinney and Steve Sarkisian in any way but national championships. Lanning has entered that discussion.
The trajectory that the program is on tells us that Oregon should win a championship soon. The architect of the recent run of success is in place for years to come.
Now it’s time to Just Do It.
Editor’s Note: This article first appeared on Rivals.com, the leader in college football and basketball recruiting coverage. Be the first to know and follow your teams by signing up here.
