Dan Lanning, head coach of Oregon football, spent just a year working with famed coach Nick Saban, but it was obviously beneficial to him. Lanning gained experience winning championships while working as a graduate assistant under Nick Saban at Alabama in 2015. As an assistant for Memphis and Georgia, he eventually rose up the ranks to become the defensive coordinator for the Bulldogs. He became the 35th head coach at Oregon in December 2021 after winning another championship with Georgia, ironically defeating Alabama in the national championship game.
Lanning has since gone 22-5 in two seasons, and under his leadership, Oregon is once again vying for a national championship. Even though he’s now the real deal, he recently told Colin Cowherd that the teachings he took from Saban are still with him.
“Getting there and being around coach for a year, you realize this guy’s a robot. The definition of consistency,” Lanning explained (h/t On3).
After a year of being around the coach, you understand that this guy is a robot. Lanning clarified the meaning of consistency (h/t On3). “You know that tomorrow is a bright and sunny day in Tuscaloosa, and he will be holding a staff meeting at 7:30 a.m. Additionally, he will maintain his consistent routine of eating the same meal for lunch and doing the same thing for breakfast.”
Maintaining consistency is important for both elite coaches and athletes, but Lanning also disclosed that Saban was constantly seeking ways to improve as a football coach. It seems like Kirby Smart at Georgia feels the same way.
https://x.com/TheHerd/status/1800600611370738031
However, there’s also the capacity to pick up knowledge from others and a constant search for a competitive advantage, both of which Kirby [Smart] excels at. As in, how can we improve upon this? Where are we able to develop? Lanning inquired. “And I believe that both of those individuals exhibit a certain amount of operational consistency in terms of player development and recruitment. That’s undoubtedly what I learned from Nick. Lanning became one of the best in the game after learning from two of the greatest. That demonstrates learning and consistency in action.