When Oregon head coach Dan Lanning took the podium for his Monday press conference, he immediately complimented Ohio State.
"Big game here. We are certainly excited for this opportunity," he said. "Getting to play a great opponent this week. (They’re) strong in all three phases. As a team, when you watch them, you really don’t see a weakness. They’re really strong across the board. This will be a great challenge for us. I know our fans will be great again this weekend. That will make that a fun atmosphere for us.”
Over the next 12 minutes, Lanning received 10 questions about the second-ranked Buckeyes, whom the third-ranked Ducks will welcome into Autzen Stadium on Saturday. From his assessment of Ohio State's offense and defense to his description of the Buckeyes' talented wild receiver room, we recap some of Lanning's best quotes from the press conference below.
Lanning likes what he's seen from Ohio State's offense this season. In fact, the 38-year-old likes it so much that he shared his desire for Oregon's offense to reach a similar performance level in 2024.
“you can’t take away one thing knowing that something else is a strength as well. They’re not really limited in what their strengths are. They’re able to run the ball really well. They’re able to throw it well. Talented at multiple positions. The quarterback can run the ball as well. There are a lot of things that present threats.
“You have to be sound in everything you come up with and be aware of any risks you’re gonna be taking and when that risk is worth it or not and be able to play sound football.”
Lanning offered similar praise for Ohio State's defense, explaining that the Buckeyes excel at limiting explosive plays and keeping the ball in front of them at all times. What's more, Lanning said Ohio State plays fast and violent at all three levels of the defense.
“They play really physical in the front. They’re able to stop the run. They’re really sound and aggressive at times in coverage. They pitch a lot of different looks at you as well. But they eliminate explosive plays. They play really sound football.
“They have good overlap in their defense. They’re able to change the picture up. They have really good D-linemen, good edges. And then they’re able to cover outside. They create a lot of challenges there.”
When asked about the talent Jeremiah Smith and Emeka Egbuka possess, Lanning was quick to mention their ability to rack up yards after the catch as well as make contested catches in short, medium and long-yardage situations
“Stop, go. They can catch the ball and they can turn it into a big play right away. It’s not necessarily always average depth of targets way down the field, (but) it’s their ability to catch it in space and get vertical.
“They block really, really well on the perimeter. And those guys have big catch radiuses. A lot of times, those 50-50 balls they win, Contested balls, they do a really good job there.”
Lanning was also quick to mention that Ohio State's receiver room is much deeper than Smith and Egbuka.
“They got more than just two great wideouts. They have several great wideouts in their program. Certainly, those two are very, very special. But whether it’s (Carnell) Tate – there’s a bunch of them on their team that can go play winning football. That’s what makes this a challenge. You can’t say, ‘OK, I’m gonna focus on this one guy.’ There are other guys on the field that can beat you.”
Lanning sees greatness in TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins, too. When asked what makes the elite running back duo special, Lanning said both ballcarriers are patient but also fast and physical.
“they’re guys that have good size and speed. They don’t go down on first contact. They’re really good at using their weapons at the second level. They do a good job with stiff arms. But they rarely go down on first contact, and they have really good vision and are patient until that opportunity window opens up. But when they see a hole, they hit and they hit with great speed.”
