Everything Dan Lanning said ahead of Oregon Ducks' spring game

Dan Lanning: It was good, good scrimmage today, certainly some stuff that we want to be able to clean up. But first we want to recognize the next weekend on the 25th for the spring game and a great opportunity to celebrate our military as well as some of our other sports, with baseball and softball playing that afternoon. So expect to see a great turnout. You know, Spring Game's at 1:00, beautiful weather, like we did day. Unbelievable today out there, a great day for us to get a lot of work in, and excited and anxious to check the film out. It's just some things that stuck out, really got to do a better job protecting the ball offensively, some runs that we got to do a better job stopping defensively, but overall, some good execution on both sides, and some things that we can clean up.

The Message

Oregon’s Dakorien Moore, right, flies over the goal line ahead of Oklahoma State’s David Kabongo for a second-quarter touchdown at Autzen.

Question: It's the last scrimmage before the spring game. What was your message to the team going into this and how do you think they responded to that?

DL: Just limited opportunities, right? We have to recognize that every day is an opportunity for us to grow and get better. And those are going away. You know, spring, I love practice, so we should be doing it all summer, right? And we don't get that opportunity, and our players need that opportunity to recover as well, but these reps are hard for us to simulate. It's one thing that makes the spring great so great, and why we always say we'll always have one here is that you create a game-like environment in our place. You know, that's where our fans show up and make that really special. So, taking advantage of days like today is somewhat of a dress rehearsal for games in the fall and this spring game coming up.

Younger players showing out

Oregon Ducks true freshman Tobi Haastrup in fall camp scrimmage No. 2.

Q: Last week, we talked about some of the younger guys showing up. I'm just curious about that progress and to see some players maybe kind of clear up some things a little bit out there.

DL: Yeah, definitely saw some guys on both sides of the ball. You know, I know Xavier (Barksdale) had an interception today, and I wouldn't be able to recognize everybody who made a play today. But there's a big run by Brandon Smith. There were several guys that made some big plays today, and moments for those guys to continue to improve and step up.

All Duck sports doing well

Feb 28, 2026; Evanston, Illinois, USA; Oregon Ducks head coach Dana Altman gestures to his team against the Northwestern Wildcats during the first half at Welsh-Ryan Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images

Q: You touched on the other sports going around the spring game. Dana Altman, a couple of weeks ago, was talking about how all the sports have to be moving in the same direction, and kind of the importance of football, of how it kind of drives everything else. Can you talk about the synergy you have with the other coaches, and the understanding of the importance of football being good, but how it helps the other sports here be good as well?

DL: So as far as you know, my opportunity here, I'll tell you this, I've never been a part of a collegiate or a university, a college or a university that has relationships that we do beyond sports, like you just mentioned it. Dana is a Hall of Fame coach, and to know that, I get to have a relationship with him, you know, I was on the phone with Derek Bradley yesterday, and you look at the job that he's done and how those guys are competing and Waz (Mark Wasikowski) and, you know, (Melyssa) Lombardi, I mean, we've got an unbelievable group of coaches here, and we're all in it for Oregon, and we all realize that we feed off of each other, and when we're all playing well, It's really benefit to us.

And certainly, you know, football is a revenue-generating sport. I think we all recognize that in the college landscape. But for us to have as many sports as we do perform at the level they do, and then the relationships extend beyond that. You know, we had to Dakorien yesterday competing in track and field, right? And then he's out there competing in the scrimmage today. So I think all those things, you know, we really tie and work really well together. You've got some outstanding coaches and all the sports here at the university that make this thing really tick, and people really pulling for each other, just to touch on decorating.

Dakorien Moore doing the long jump

Oregon football wide receiver Dakorien Moore competes in the men's long jump during the Oregon Team Invitational track and field meet at Hayward Field April 17, 2026.

Q: What was last week like for Dakorien when that became a possibility for him to jump?

DL: I talked about it in our team meeting today, just the connection is something we talk about. We've modified a little bit of his load work. We were really close with the track staff on what we want this to look like for him, to be able to compete at a high level and still get the work that he has to get in from a football standpoint for us? So last practice, you know, this, this last practice on Thursday, is a little bit modified for him, a little less player low, but full go, you know, today, to be able to take advantage of everything he has, and obviously has a pretty special skill set, to be able to go out there and compete. And I think he placed sixth in the meet, the first, you know, his first time doing it. And I think that's only going to get better for him as he takes advantage of those opportunities.

Jamari Johnson growing as a leader

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - JANUARY 09: Jamari Johnson #9 of the Oregon Ducks celebrates a touchdown against the Indiana Hoosiers during the first quarter in the 2025 College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on January 09, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images)

Q: Just what have you seen from him (Johnson), in terms of his game upstairs, in a way that's expanded for him and second year in the offense, just continue to grow there?

DL: Yeah, night and day to when he got here. And that speaks to his dedication and the work you know, Coach Smith and Coach Mehringer and those guys have done as far as getting him up to speed, I think that's a room that's always had a level of accountability. We always felt like we could count on our tight ends to do the job that they needed to do at a high level. But Jamari has put in a ton of work, and he's really developed as a leader this offseason. He's a guy that he can coach the other guys on the field make sure we're running the right routes or blocking the right guy, and that's that's credit to him and the work that he's put in.

Wishes leading up to the spring game?

Oregon coach Dan Lanning during Oregon football’s Media Day on July 28, 2025, at Autzen Stadium in Eugene.

Q: After the first scrimmage, you talked about how the first scrimmage was sort of used to evaluate who can play at the high level. For you. Now that you have finished your second scrimmage and are getting close to the spring game, what do you hope to see within the next week leading up to that spring game?

DL: Yeah, same thing, more growth, right? We had opportunities that we want to be able to take advantage of. And it's not just football. It's continued to become connected. It's continuing to make some sacrifices that put us in a position to have success. We want to next season, but it's about focusing on day by day. Right today, we'll be evaluating the spring right Monday, we'll have another practice, and get an opportunity to go improve on those things that we want to go execute.

Young linebackers

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - NOVEMBER 29: Jerry Mixon #54 of the Oregon Ducks and Nasir Wyatt #32 of the Oregon Ducks celebrate a sack against the Washington Huskies at Husky Stadium on November 29, 2025 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

Q: What have you seen out of the young linebackers this spring?

DL: Yeah, you know, certainly big growth for guys, especially going into the second year of the program. You know, Gavin (Nix) Year 2 is a lot different than Gavin Year 1, but there's a group of linebackers that they realize they're the quarterback of the defense. They got to get everybody lined up. They have to process a lot more information than a lot of their people. And the more guys that we can have playing at that winning level of football, you know, the better opportunities we get. And that's sometimes that's a selfless position. They do a lot of different things for our team, whether it's special teams, you know, whether it's defense, there are a lot of hats that they wear. We ask those guys to communicate a lot, and they're really growing up there.

Program growth from Lanning Year 1 to now

Oregon head coach Dan Lanning celebrates the Ducks’ win as the Oregon Ducks face the Penn State Nittany Lions on Sept. 27, 2025, at Beaver Stadium in University Park, Pennsylvania.

Q: If you can look back at where this team was, where this program was going on your first spring game, what are you most proud of? What's developed with you as a coach, the coaching staff, the program as a whole?

DL: Yeah, it's certainly different. I think it starts with player standards, right? You know, you come in as a coach, and you say, here's the things that I want us to be about. And now you see the players saying, "Hey, here's the things that we want to be about." I think that resonates. You know, we have a group where it's not just coaches on the field; it's players who are coaches on the field and operating at a really, really high level. But every year is different. You know, I'm looking at the spring, and you try to compare it to previous years and different seasons, and it's a new group. It's a new team. I had our guys lift up their hands that they went through spring ball last year, and it's about 60 percent of the team that experienced it, and another 40 percent of the team that had never been through a spring practice here before. So that's a big difference. That's a lot of guys. We got to get caught up to speed.

Spring Game format

Combat Ducks running back Jay Harris carries for a touchdown as the Fighting Ducks face off against Mighty Oregon in the Oregon Ducks spring game on April 26, 2025, at Autzen Stadium in Eugene.

Q: What do you envision the format of the Spring Game being?

DL: Yeah, similar to how we've done in the past. And there'll be some guys that we probably shut down or limit at times throughout that, but we've got a lot of guys on this team that need the opportunity to go play football in that game day environment. So it'll be very similar to what it's been, you know, running quarters like we've done, playing two-minute situations out, trying to create some of that on both sides of the ball, separate the teams in the two different groups. And there might be a point in the scrimmage where we're going to pull a guy from one team to another team right to be able to accomplish everything that we want to accomplish. But special teams, you know, the whole nine yards of offense/defense will go out there and play football.

Wearing the green dot

Sep 6, 2025; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Oregon Ducks linebacker Jerry Mixon (54) celebrates after intercepting the football for a touchdown during the second half against the Oklahoma State Cowboys at Autzen Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

Q: The conversation earlier in the spring was just how many guys you had who were able to wear the green dot, and then working through that, just how's that developed throughout the spring, and what does that look like going next week?

DL: Yeah, the expectation of that position is that we grow every single person into a position where they can right. Not everybody's ready to do that. Yet you don't get ready, unless you get put in that situation. So communications got to continue to elevate, and you know, it doesn't. There's no science that says you have to have a linebacker wearing the green dot either, right? There's several guys capable on our defense who can wear that and communicate that. So we'll even test out some of those opportunities as well.

Markus Dixon

Clemson tight end Markus Dixon (84) runs down the hill ahead of Clemson safety Brodey Conn (40) and Clemson kicker Quinn Castner (36) high-five exchange, before kickoff with Syracuse in Memorial Stadium before the game with Syracuse in Clemson, S.C. Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025.

Q: What have you seen from Markus Dixon this spring in terms of what he brings to the tight end room and the way that his skill set complements Jamari?

DL: Probably starts with Markus is a person, right? He's a guy that everyone on our team really enjoys being around. He's very inquisitive. He wants to figure out. I saw Kenyon here the other day working out, and he's asking Kenyon questions about, hey, things in the run game, what he can improve. But he's a guy that attacks every day, brings a level of maturity coming from somewhere else, and knows how he has to improve and get better. But he's working really, really hard, and he's been a great teammate. That's one thing that really resonates.

Ball security

Oregon running back Dierre Hill Jr. carries the ball as the Oregon Ducks face the Indiana Hoosiers in the Peach Bowl on Jan. 9, 2026, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.

Q: How did you see the team just kind of respond to those moments offensively?

DL: The thing you've got to remember is, if the ball was turned over, that means one side was celebrating, right? And today we were split up into teams, so we had a Fighting Ducks team and the Combat Ducks team. So there were really guys on both sides of the ball celebrating when things went right and vice versa, when things went wrong. So it's more about just making sure we're not creating ball in jeopardy place. We're taking care of the ball. But on the same note, you want to see that defensively. Want to see guys attacking the ball. So everything sitting in my seat to win on one side, and it's a loss on the other. But that's what you want, some good back and forth.

NFL Draft

CHICAGO, IL - APRIL 28: NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell annonces DeForest Buckner of Oregon as the #7 overall pick by the San Francisco 49ers during the first round of the 2016 NFL Draft at the Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University on April 28, 2016 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jon Durr/Getty Images)

Q: We won't talk to you till after the draft, just the opportunity for those guys coming up next couple of days, and what's just gonna be your involvement bounced around before, what's that gonna be like for you?

DL: Yeah, try to be a part of as much of that as possible. We go, you know, we're sitting in a unique situation where we have a lot of guys, they're gonna probably hear their name called that first day, which is exciting for this program, and it's credit to them and the work that they put in, so big, it's a weekend to celebrate, you know, guys chasing their dreams and reaching those opportunities, and we're grateful. You know, they're reaching those opportunities because the work that they put in, and they'll forever be Ducks. So really excited to see where guys go. I know there'll be a couple of guys that their name gets called later than they anticipated, or maybe it doesn't get called at all, and I'm excited to see what those guys do with that opportunity as well. But I know this, our phones have been ringing a lot lately, and there's gonna be some Ducks that create big opportunities for themselves over this weekend, and are gonna be guys that everybody recognizes going in next fall.

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This article originally appeared on Ducks Wire: Oregon Ducks head coach Dan Lanning previews annual spring game