With the 2026 college football season just around the corner, the Oregon Ducks and head coach Dan Lanning are beginning to prepare for yet another chance at a National Championship run this offseason.

Lanning, who is set to enter his fifth season as the Ducks’ head coach, has faced some criticism for the team’s results over the last two seasons. But despite all the concerns around him and the program, many college football analysts are still high on the 40-year-old head coach before the 2026 season.

In a recent article from CBS Sports’ Tom Fornelli asked a panel of college football experts to list their top 25 coaches in the sport, with Lanning coming in at the No. 5 spot.

"Dan Lanning has been at Oregon for four seasons and gone 48-8 with a conference record of 32-4 across two leagues,” Fornelli wrote. “After winning the Big Ten in his first season, Oregon failed to reach the Big Ten title game last year, but won its first two playoff games since beating Florida State in the first CFP back in 2014. Lanning has achieved a lot, and many view him as the next coach to win their first national title. He has the resume of one of the five best coaches in the country, but until he breaks through with that national title, it's hard to justify moving him up higher than this.”

Throughout his time as a college coordinator and coach, Lanning has repeatedly proven he is one of the best in the business. Before taking over as the Ducks’ head coach, the young coach made his presence felt as Georgia’s defensive coordinator under Kirby Smart. During his stint in the SEC, Lanning played a key role in the Bulldogs' development as a unit, which led to the program winning the National Championship in 2021.

However, his success with Georgia would take time to officially translate to Oregon, as Lanning would finish with a 22-5 record during his first two seasons in Eugene. But after the program decided to leave the Pac-12 before the 2024 season, the up-and-coming head coach would quickly turn the Ducks into one of the best schools in the nation as soon as he joined the Big 10 Conference.

In his first season in a new conference, Lanning and his squad managed to finish the regular season with an undefeated record, with wins against the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Penn State Nittany Lions. Still, a second-round playoff exit in the Rose Bowl against the Buckeyes haunted the program, while simultaneously fueling his squad to reach new heights in 2025.

Oregon did make some improvements in 2025, as the team would make it to the CFP semifinals, but would once again lose to the eventually National Championship winners, the Indiana Hoosiers.

Ducks Roundtable also offers a fan community and message board. We’d love to have you join us to talk all things Oregon Ducks. Click the “Join” button at the top of the page to join our community for free.