Dan Lanning has already knocked out Ryan Day’s Ohio State in a seismic showdown in the mid-season. The Buckeyes took another big blow from the Michigan Wolverines in the iconic ‘Game’, but guess what? Their path to the national title is still straight and clear. Right after the Tennessee game, they can hope to hit the quarter-final and meet the Ducks in the Rose Bowl, and the semis will follow as the Orange Bowl and Cotton Bowl on Jan. 9 and 10. Ryan Day and Co. will go to their extreme to make it click this time. An elimination will bring too much hurt to take for a team that’s still not recovered from the 30th November’s trauma. Dan Lanning must hold his card tight and not give them any loose slit to get away. Is he doing his homework right?
The No. 1 Oregon Ducks stand out as Big Ten conference champions in their outstanding first season in the conference. While every other team in the division had their sloppy days, the Ducks remain undefeated for the first time in program history and have earned a No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff. They will look to secure another marquee win on New Year’s Day at the quintessential Rose Bowl. Their opponent, however, hangs in the balance till now. The winner of the No. 8 Ohio State vs. No. 9 Tennessee will get to see in the eye of a top-tier Oregon. So, the game scheduled for the 21st will be a crucial deal for the Ducks undoubtedly. But Lanning isn’t hosting a watch party for the team. ”I am not, I want to watch that game on my own in front of my iPad, making my notes without anybody else bothering me,” the star CFB coach made his plan clear on ESPN when asked about it.
Lanning added that the team has a practice in the morning and makes sure every guy gets the opportunity to watch Tennessee vs Ohio State and make their own assumptions and conclusions. But he prefers to do his master’s analysis inside a locked room.
The Ducks did not lose any of their last three Rose Bowl appearances in 2012, 2015, and 2020. However, in 2015, the Ducks got over Florida State in a terrific 59-20 win, but only to give the national championship to Ohio State shortly after. Now, as they inch closer to another historic Rose Bowl shot, all eyes are on Lanning. A win not only solidifies his newfound identity as the most stupendous coach of the college football periphery but also stern a good revenge on the Buckeyes for their 9-year-old title drop.
Lanning made it a reality for his boys to stay unwavering, iron-focused, and meticulous in every single game and make every shot count. As Oregon toppled Penn State in the conference championship, they will get a bye before the iconic Rose Bowl, and he, by no means, can let it waste. ”We’ll almost utilize the coming weeks as a bye week from that standpoint of evaluating our strengths and creating an awareness of where we’re at and figuring out what our weaknesses are and where we can improve,” Lanning said in a pre-game presser.
But irrespective of their off-the-chart season, the Ducks fell victim to a brutal college football intricacy. Did coach Lanning complain? No, like a grown man, no!
Dan Lanning accepted Oregon’s toughest playoff path with zero grudge
Lanning did it all! From beating the Nittany Lions, having Dillon Gabriels on a tear, earning a top seed, and earning a bye, he left no stone unturned to make it a breakout season. But wait, that hadn’t essentially made his path to the national title any easier. Rather, on the contrary, he got the toughest schedule to face to hit the Bull’s eye. Is it just? Well, if you look at Georgia, it doesn’t seem to be, but you know about the strongest shoulder-toughest battle theory, right?
If they succumbed to a loss against Penn State, it would have been easier. It would have handed them the 5th seed and the privilege to face the lowest-ranked conference winner, ranked at No.12 in round 1. Also, for the quarterfinals, they would have faced off against the second-lowest-ranked conference winner. Social media fanfare rallied behind coach Lanning and his team being victims of the top-12 reality. But who cares! The 38-year-old doesn’t at all.
He trained his boys that way and is seated in their ability to beat every odds and earn what’s theirs. When asked about it, he could only sum it up in a sentence, ‘‘Winning a national championship isn’t supposed to be easy.”
We can smell some true Conqueror’s vibe! Now let Lanning just sit with his private watch session and pull some Chad strategy for the Rose Bowl.
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