Greg McElroy puts Dan Lanning in the spotlight with top 5 inclusion

Modified Mar 27, 2025 22:08 GMT

Syndication: The Register Guard - Source: Imagn

Dan Lanning is preparing his Oregon Ducks for what will be their second season in the Big Ten Conference. He is hoping that the Ducks will be able to replicate their success from the 2024 season, and potentially go one step better and win the national championship in 2025.

Lanning will go into the season as one of the top coaches in college football, according to analyst Greg McElroy. On the latest edition of the "Always College Football" podcast, the former Alabama quarterback gave a list of his top 10 coaches.

Lanning came in fifth, with McElroy saying the following about him.

"(Lanning) is off to a blistering start after taking the head coaching role at Oregon. He is at a remarkable 35-6. Those 35 wins are, by far, the most to start a career at Oregon.

"It's pretty impressive to think about what has been accomplished in his tenure. What's most impressive is probably the 10-6 record against AP-ranked teams and his ability to adapt to the modern era." (17:35)

Dan Lanning was hired by the Oregon Ducks before the 2022 season, and in only three years in charge, he has been able to make this program one of the best in the country.

During his three years with the team, he has led them to a Pac-12 conference game (losing to ranked Washington) and won the Big Ten Conference in the Ducks' first year in the conference with an unbeaten record.

Losses have been a rare occurrence for Lanning, and the six losses that he has to his name are all against teams of similar strength that are ranked in the top 25.

This included two defeats to a Washington Huskies side that made the National Championship game in 2023. There was also a defeat in the Rose Bowl to eventual national champions, the Ohio State Buckeyes, last season.

Through effective recruitment and strong use of the transfer portal, Lanning has been able to create a Ducks side that is strong enough to constantly compete with the best teams in college football. However, the one thing that eludes him is a playoff run. Could 2025 be the year?

Who else did Greg McElroy rank in his top 10?

Greg McElroy also mentioned nine other coaches whom he thinks are going into the season as the best in college football. Here are the other coaches he mentioned:

10. James Franklin (Penn State Nittany Lions)
9. Brian Kelly (LSU Tigers)
8. Jeff Brohm (Louisville Cardinals)
7. Dabo Swinney (Clemson Tigers)
6. Kalen DeBoer (Alabama Crimson Tide)
4. Marcus Freeman (Notre Dame Fighting Irish)
3. Steve Sarkisian (Texas Longhorns)
2. Ryan Day (Ohio State Buckeyes)
1. Kirby Smart (Georgia Bulldogs)

About the author

Ben Tredinnick is a journalist who covers college football and college basketball at Sportskeeda who is currently studying for a masters in Data Science. His degree in Psychology has helped him gain an in-depth understanding of the minds of coaches.

Ben has been involved in sports writing since 2022 and covered the NFL previously. His strengths include providing in-depth profiles of athletes and coaches, with a particular focus on development, and looking at which teams could be in the hunt for today's college stars.

Ben enjoys following college sports more than the NBA or NFL because there is more variation in terms of playstyles. The tournaments are often more competitive than the major leagues, and due to the constant turnover of players, there are rarely any "superteams" in college sports.

He prioritizes research, looks at multiple sources and publications to make sure he gets the full picture of the story before writing. He tries not to write from a one-sided perspective to allow the reader to be able to make their mind up on their own.

A Texas Longhorns fan, as well as a massive New York Giants fan, some of his favorite college players of all time are Arch Manning, Tim Tebow and Reggie Bush.

When he is not working, Ben enjoys watching films (especially Godzilla) and spending time with his cat.

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Edited by Akshay Saraswat