Dan Lanning has candid reaction to Nick Saban's "robotic" style: "Never been more impressed with the consistency of Coach Saban"

Oregon head coach Dan Lanning is in the process of building a national championship-worthy team in Eugene. The 37-year-old maybe a new face in the CFB head coaching scene, but he led the Ducks to a 12-2 record and a Fiesta Bowl win in 2023, even though they fell short of the Pac-12 title against Washington.

Dan Lanning started his coaching career in 2008 and worked with former Alabama head coach Nick Saban for a season in 2015. In a recent interview on the Ryen Russillo podcast, Lanning shared how Saban influenced his coaching style and inspired him with his work ethic.

"I've never been more impressed with the consistency of a coach than Coach Saban. Just watching him every day, it was almost robotic how well he was able to move, but robotic and adaptable. There are a lot of people that have come from this tree. Some have had a lot of success and some have not," Lanning said on the Ryen Russillo podcast.

Dan Lanning then went on to explain the reason behind the failure of those people who tried to be like Nick Saban.

"I feel like the ones that maybe haven't had as much success, tried to be Nick. You know, Nick was Nick. You know, Nick, Coach Saban was himself every day and that's something I appreciate and learned from him that whenever you get your opportunity, you've got to be you. But you've got to be the definition of consistency if you want to last in this profession."

Dan Lanning was a graduate assistant at Alabama in 2015 and helped them win the CFP championship. He then coached the linebackers at Memphis in 2016 and became the defensive coordinator at Georgia in 2018. He took over as the head coach of Oregon in 2022 and led them to a successful season.

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Dan Lanning opens up about the Alabama HC job after Nick Saban's retirement

Since Dan Lanning had experience working under Saban, many believed Lanning would be a suitable successor in Tuscaloosa before Kalen DeBoer was announced as Nick Saban's replacement after the 7x title-winning coach's retirement.

When asked about the possibility of taking up the open coaching gig, Dan Lanning said it did not cross his mind as his focus is on making Oregon a natty contention-worthy team.

"It was never really a thought in our mind. I love Coach Saban and gosh, I can't tell you how much he's done for my career. But I think we can make Oregon the best job in college football, and that happens with focusing with where we're at."

The Oregon Ducks will join the Big Ten conference for the 2024 season as a part of conference realignment. Can Lanning lead them to glory in a new conference?