Notable quotes from Dan Lanning's presser before CFP Semifinals

The Oregon Ducks are setting up for one of the most anticipated matchups of the season in the College Football Playoff Semifinals. They will face the Indiana Hoosiers in a rematch of their regular season game that the Hoosiers won 30-20.

Both of these teams are vastly different compared to when we saw them play each other back in October, but they are still evenly matched. They each rank among the top offensive and defensive units, and we know that their coaching staffs are both some of the best in the nation.

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The Ducks are coming off a convincing win over the Texas Tech Red Raiders in the quarterfinals, but even in a shutout, Dan Lanning has a list of things he wants his team to improve upon. Let’s take a look at what he had to say in his latest press conference ahead of Oregon’s showdown with the Hoosiers in the Peach Bowl.

Opening Statement

Lanning: Yeah, honored to be here, certainly honored to get to participate in the Peach Bowl. You know, Gary, appreciate everything that you do. Got an unbelievable amount of respect for Coach Cignetti and the job that he's done at Indiana. You watch this team on film, obviously we got to experience it firsthand, this is one of, if not, the best coached teams in college football. They play with unbelievable technique. They challenge you in every facet, in special teams, defensively, offensively. They've got great quarterback play, which I think is a secret to being in this position that they're in. And you watch this group, they play together. They've got great answers. They do what they do extremely well. And on defense, they challenge you in every way. They give you a lot of different looks. But this is just a group that's obviously playing their best football now, you saw that in their most recent game, and again, just honored to get the opportunity to go share a field with coach and the job that he's done there.

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Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop

Q: How has your team improved since your first meeting with Indiana?

Lanning: In a lot of different facets. I won't get into every detail. But you watch both these teams, neither one of us are the same team that you saw earlier in the season when we played each other. And you know, I think we've grown in a lot of different ways. Found different strengths as your team changes, you change, and you adapt to your strengths of your team. And you see the same thing with Indiana.

Scouting Report

Q: What do you see that makes this Hoosiers defense elite?

Lanning: In a lot of ways, you call it an illusion defense. They show you one thing and they take something else away. They're really good at post-snap movements, which makes it difficult for the quarterback. Their defensive line plays with relentless effort. They're tough to block up front, and then the technique continues to show up. They've got a guy basically playing quarterback there at linebacker that's able to get them lined up and execute. They've got a strong corner there in Ponds. They fly to the ball and they attack it in the air. Probably the best zone-vision break defense I've seen this year in college football, you know? They do an unbelievable job there. And they get hats, you know? And obviously, it all starts with stopping the run. They do a great job with that.

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Surprise

Q: How has Dante Moore improved at reading disguised coverages?

Lanning: Experience. You gotta remember, when we played earlier in the season, Dante hadn't played a ton of games. And you know, as you play an entire season, you get exposed to a lot of different looks. You learn from those moments. And Dante certainly learned from a lot of those moments, what he's seen. He’s been obviously a great player for us and done an unbelievable job, but he's not the same player as he was earlier in this year, and what they do on defense is really difficult. You have to be willing to take what they give you at times. They do a great job of protecting against shots. But I think Dante's been a really good decision maker throughout the year, and that'll be something that's really important.

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Back to the Beginning

Q: What are your feelings about going back to the stadium where you coached your first game?

Lanning: We're a different team now, but I remember that game very vividly. You know, 49-3 wasn't fun, right? It was a good baptism into coaching, and we're a completely different group now, but this will be as much of a challenge as that game was when you're playing a team like Indiana.

Evolution

Q: How has your offensive line played and evolved over the course of the season?

Lanning: I certainly agree with coach, you know, I if a team's good at one thing, there's ability to take it away. And you look at both of our teams, you see a team that's multiple in the sense, the way they're able to run it, the way they're able to throw the screen game. Both have intermediate passing game as well as shots. You know, and I think it's about when you are going to take those plays and make those plays, making sure that you're protected. And that's something that Indiana has done a great job at. People have tried to be aggressive against them. You see them take advantage of that, right? They get the hats in there to protect and they take advantage of a one-on-one matchup. But our offensive line, you know, Coach Terry's done a great job all season. You know, this last game against Texas Tech, the rush was able to take advantage of us at times. So I think that'll be a little bit of a chip on our guy's shoulder. There's some opportunities that we can be better there in how we hold the pocket and how we take take care of the ball. But ultimately, you see two teams that are really complete. And like coach said, it really starts with the run game.

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Shapeshifters

Q: How have your defensive coverages evolved over the course of the season?

Lanning: Just to build on that sentiment, first, I tell you, coach Cignetti, keep focusing on those portal guys. We're going to do the same thing here. So I already did a breakfast with some recruits this morning. It is what it is, right? But I think on defense, you always have to adapt a little bit more to the team you're playing. And I'd say, you know, regardless what the game is, you want to try to take away their strengths. You know, some of the stuff that we did in the previous game was built to the strengths of Texas Tech. Some of the stuff we'll do in this game have to be built around the strengths of Indiana and what we have to do there. So hopefully we always are multiple and can pitch different looks. But you also have to, you know, ride the horse that got you here and do what you do well.

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Stay Calm

Q: How do you make sure Dante Moore doesn’t make this game bigger than it is?

Lanning: I think when games don't go your way, you're always trying to look for answers and reasons why. And it's really simple. They blocked better, they tackled better, they moved the ball and controlled the clock. They converted third downs, you know, it was all relatively close going into the fourth quarter and then we turned the ball over. So you try to find all these moments that “okay, this was the difference.” It's every play, right? Every play added up, and every play mattered. When you're playing a team with great technique that has a great scheme, like Indiana, you know, that's, that's the edge. But again, I know Dante is trying to find, “okay, what are the things that didn't go right?” And how can he be better. You know, I have a lot of confidence in Dante and the way he preps and, you know, knowing he maybe felt like he forced some things in this first game, he's not the same guy, like I said earlier, at this point in the season.

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Learned our Lesson

Q: What lessons have you learned from rematches in previous years that you can use for Indiana?

Lanning: Yeah, I won't get into great detail, but more than anything, stick to your process. You know, I think Coach Cignetti would share the same sentiment of, our time with Coach Saban, one thing you learned about is process, and it's all about process. It's all about making sure you don't go into a game when you're sitting in the position that Indiana is sitting in, or that we're sitting in, and say, “okay, all of a sudden, I'm going to change a lot of the things that we do.” You’ve got to buy into what you've done the whole year to get you where you're at, and really double down. So more than anything, double down on our process. You know, our guys have been a part of big games. When you play in the Big 10, you're going to be a part of big games. And, you know, every game can go different, right? Every game has a life of itself. So that's what we have to be able to do, is focus on our process, be really obsessed with the details going into a game like this, and put your players in position to have success.

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Patriarch

Q: Can you speak about the impact of Nick Saban?

Lanning: Yeah, I just echo that. You know, I was working at Sam Houston State before I went to Alabama, and had to take a pay cut to go be a GA there. And when anybody asked me why, I said, “I'm going to get my doctorate in football.” And that's what I felt like working for Coach Saban, just like coach said, you learn so much. Things I thought I knew, I realized I didn't know anything, and I got to really carry that over with the opportunity to work with Coach Smart, who built off of that as well at Georgia. And that was an unbelievable experience for me, and obviously it shows here as we enter the semifinals.

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Transfer Portal

Q: How do you deal with transfer portal chaos right now?

Lanning: I don’t know if it makes you better, dealing with what we’re dealing with. But what it has made football teams, and what it has made coaches and players, is we can handle chaos. And we’re really malleable, we understand that college football, right now, is about change. There’s going to be a lot of change. The teams that can do the best at adapting and handling what's thrown at you, we don't make the rules, we just have to adapt to them. And our guys handle that. They're tough kids. They can handle the chaos of the schedule as much as we can keep it similar and consistent for them, as much as we can be open and honest with them, I think they can handle almost anything you pitch at them. And really, coaching staffs are built that way now too. You know, there's a lot of things going on. You know, we're dealing with, you know, two coaches on our staff that are going on to be head coaches. And the timing isn't necessarily perfect, but it's been done before, and it's a great challenge. So think of, if you look at the chaos in football, and look at it as a challenge for your players and for your coaching staff, you build people that are resilient. You build build people that are adaptable. You build an organization that can withstand a lot of the changes that exist.

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Defensive Growth

Q: How has your defense grown since the start of the season?

Lanning: The growth has been pretty standard, right? It's been pretty consistent for our team, you know, throughout, like I said, none of the teams that are still around have not gotten better. We've improved, we’re tackling at a higher clip, but it wasn't even two games ago that we didn't tackle that well versus JMU. So we’ve got a lot to work on. We’ve got a lot to improve. We're nowhere near a finished product, and that's part of what makes the game of football great, is that there's always room to get better. You know, even in the game, you can look at the scoreboard of our last game and say, “Oh, we played unbelievable defense.” And I can tell you five things we’ve got to do better right now from that game. So for us, it's about consistent improvement and continue to tackle whatwe can do better as a staff and as a team.

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Fostering Confidence

Q: How do you make your team as confident as they are?

Lanning: Players create confidence, coaches support it right? They go out there by doing it and winning it and failing, right? You make mistakes, and then you challenge yourself to say, “Okay, I don't want to make the same mistake again.” And mistakes can be a really good thing, right? Especially when you have the self awareness to recognize it. And you'd like those mistakes to happen in practice. And then you'd like to have guys that are hungry enough to say, “Okay, I'm really good at this. Let me not spend all my time at practice working on this. Let me go work on what I'm not good at.” And once you start doing that, you know, whether it's a quarterback seeing a coverage or it's a defensive lineman trying to work a certain technique, you can create repetition, you can create confidence.

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It’s a Secret

Q: Who will be your No. 2 nickel and dime player?

Lanning: Yeah, I'm probably going to play it, James, but if I'm not able to go, we'll put one of the other coaches out there.

Tough Conversations

Q: What are your conversations like with players who are transferring?

Lanning: Each one's different. Some guys that come in and I share the same sentiment as them, that they might have an opportunity to be able to make an impact somewhere else. Some guys come in and you hate to see them go. We've been really fortunate to be able to hang on to the players that we really want to be here and, you know, have success. And then some of them, you see them walk out the door, and you just hope that they have a better opportunity wherever they move next. You know, the grass isn't always greener, and that's something you have to figure out in life at times. But that's, you know, one of the life lessons that exists right now in college ball. But every conversation is different. You know, the one thing I expect from our guys is to have that conversation.

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Elite Conference

Q: What are your thoughts on the success of the Big 10?

Lanning: Yeah, I just share the sentiment. I mean, I've been a part of the SEC just like Coach Cignetti has. I've been a part of the old PAC-12. You know, I've been a part of a bunch of different conferences, and it's hard to argue that anybody's doing it better right now than the Big 10. There's some quality from top to bottom. Obviously, the national championship teams have come from this conference the last two years, and the landscape has changed. You know, five years ago there was another conference that was rolling and dominating. And I think the way you indicate that is the success of the teams in the conference. And there's a lot of teams that have had success, and a variety of different teams, you know? Coach just mentioned it, but we saw Michigan and Washington a couple years ago in the national championship game. You see Ohio State, you know, this year you'll see a different Big 10 team, you know? And I think that speaks to the quality and the strength of the conference overall.

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Culture Shock

Q: How important is culture?

Lanning: I share the same sentiment. I think to get to this point this season, culture is a word that's overused, certainly in our sport, but you don't get to this point if you're not able to be selfless, and those are the lessons you try to teach in football. You have to think of the group and the team over yourself, and to be at this point, that means there's a lot of players that made that decision, and you have to realize that individual success is going to come from team success. I think if you look at both of our teams, you see a lot of guys that are having a ton of individual success, and it all started with somebody else around them helping them have that success. You know, there's no great quarterback without great offensive line play. There's no great secondary play without great defensive line play. And that's what's great about football, is the quicker your team can realize that the team and connection are going to be separating factors, the quicker you're going to have success. And we've certainly been able to create some of that here at Oregon, and obviously Indiana has been able to create the same thing.

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This article originally appeared on Ducks Wire: Top quotes from Dan Lanning before CFP game vs. Indiana Hoosiers