Oregon Football: Notable quotes from Dan Lanning ahead of spring game

In just a matter of days, Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks will be preparing for one of the best days of the spring, getting ready to take the show inside Autzen Stadium for the annual spring game.

It’s a day of festivities and fun for the fans, and a chance to a litany of players on the roster to break out and show what they are capable of. For a head coach, it is an exciting time.

While a lot of hard work and progress has taken place over the past couple of months in Eugene, the Ducks finally have a chance to show some of the new tools in their belt. On Tuesday after practice, Lanning met with media members for the final time ahead of the spring game to discuss how the team is coming along, and some of the things that they are looking forward to on Saturday.

Here are some of the most notable quotes from that interview.

Lanning:  “Really good practice today, I thought we had probably our best competition for both sides. Got a couple of scenarios, did a coming out scenario, finished with the red area series, really had success on both sides of the ball. Really high compete level, which is exactly what you want. You know, I think a lot of college football is done right now, we get an opportunity to continue to get better. And that’s really been beneficial to us and we took advantage of it today.”

Question: You’ve had a chance to watch film from Saturday’s scrimmage, what are some of your main takeaways?

Lanning: “Really everything I kind of said right after the scrimmage. You know we gotta do a better job taking care of the ball. You know, but on both sides of the ball, we had too many middle busts on the defense, didn’t take care of the ball well enough on offense. So certainly some stuff that we can improve on both sides.”

Question: From Practice 1 to Practice 12, where do you think you guys have improved the most this year?

Lanning: “The competition, right? The ability to go out there and compete every day not treat it as practice but treat it as an opportunity to get better.”

Question: Where do you think your guys have improved the most this year compared to last spring?

Lanning: “I’ve seen a lot of guys make dramatic improvements. You know, you talked about intrinsic motivation. You have to be motivated to be great yourself. I think you’re starting to see that show up with some of these guys. The guys that have really taken advantage of it, you know, they’re taking big strides and they’re gonna put themselves in position to make an impact for our team.”

Question: What are some of the things that you hope to see on Saturday?

Lanning: “Play clean, right? We’d like to be penalty-free pre-snap, post-snap from a penalty standpoint. We want to do a good job taking care of the ball, but we also want to attack the ball, right? And then ultimately, you just want to see that competition, guys go out there and treat it like a game. Have an opportunity to go get better and take advantage of it.”

Question: Do you place some extra weight or importance on the spring game, or is it largely just another spring practice?

Lanning: “I think there’s value in seeing how guys perform, you know, on stage when there’s a setting that’s a little bit different. You know, when you don’t have a coach standing behind you during a practice rep. So, you know, we create a lot of those move-the-field periods in practice where we play like a game, but ultimately when you have to go out there and actually execute right with the play clock, right with the tick-tick going and in the sequence of a game. I think there’s definitely some value in it.”

Question: Junior Angilau as been limited for much of spring but ramping up. How close is he to full participation and will we see him on Saturday?

Lanning: “We’ve been really precautionary with him. We’ll see what it looks like I wouldn’t put it one way or the other right now.”

Question: What do you think the mentality of this team is compared to last year?

Lanning: “Ultimately, I think overall physicality, right? I think you’re gonna see a real physical team. I think that’s a brand of learning how the way you practice and the way you play carries over. You know, we have been much more physical as a team this spring than I think we were last year.”

Question: What have you seen from Brandon Dorlus this spring in terms of improvement?

Lanning: “Playing with better pad level, using his hands consistently, better understanding. I think he did a good job of assessing ‘Okay, here’s what my film said last year,’ right? And then here’s the things that I can tweak to get there. So some technical things that he’s been able to improve and then just his overall compete. There’s an expectation you know, for him and really all those guys that can play along the front for us to play at a certain level.”

Question: How have you seen JPJ step up this spring in a leadership role that comes with competing for the starting center spot?

Lanning: “I think one of the biggest things is Jackson making sure that he keeps himself available. You know, this guy’s a tough player, and he’s got dings and bruises through throughout the spring that he’s made sure he continues to stay available out there for our team, which has been good. Then the center you know, there’s no question when you’re playing center or guard. You got to know a lot of what’s going on and be an extension really of the quarterback. You touch the ball every play so wherever he’s at on that offensive line, just the knowledge of the game for him and the consistency, starting to show up.”

Question: What have you seen from Patrick Herbert as he’s being asked to fill a bigger role with Terrance Ferguson out?

Lanning: “Patrick probably doesn’t get enough credit for how consistent of a player he’s been when his number was called last year, he did exactly what we asked him to do. I know he knows that he has a role to embrace and a lot more to do for and then also seeing a young guy like Kenyan step up. It’s been really beneficial for us as well.”

Question: How big of a factor will the fans be on Saturday in terms of creating an environment that props up the culture here and helps impress recruits that will be in town?

Lanning: “Yeah, I think this is a great example of how everybody here at Oregon needs to realize that they have an impact. We’re gonna have great players here on campus, but they have an impact from what that experience looks like, right? So they can help create that experience. But from a fan standpoint, from an administrative standpoint, from our staff standpoint, making that experience really unique and special for the guys that we have here on campus.”

Question: How will you guys determine success recruiting this weekend? While some may think you need to land several commitments for it to be successful, what do you guys view that bar as?

Lanning: “We’re not used car salesmen. It’s not a sales pitch for us. You know, guys are going to jump on board when they’re ready to jump on board. This impact, everything matters, right? So this weekend could certainly impact that. But we’re not trying to trick guys to come to our campus, right? When they’re ready to be Ducks, we’re excited about it. Does it mean we get a commitment? It very well could Does it mean we might not? That’s okay. It’s a long, steady race and it’s a long way away from Signing Day. It’s about the overall experience for our guys. The overall relationships and connection that’s built and then them seeing a product that they can be proud of and want to be a part of.”