Dallas Cowboys Target Ra'Shaad Samples Staying With Oregon Ducks, Dan Lanning

The Dallas Cowboys interviewed Oregon Ducks running backs coach Ra’Shaad Samples for the same role with the Cowboys. Samples is staying with the Oregon Ducks and coach Dan Lanning instead of taking a job in the NFL. The Cowboys are hiring Derrick Foster as running backs coach, who worked with the New Orleans Saints’ running backs during the 2024 season.

Nov 25, 2023; Tempe, Arizona, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils wide receivers coach Ra'Shaad Samples against the Arizona Wildcats during the Territorial Cup at Mountain America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports / Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

The Dallas Cowboys interviewed Oregon Ducks running backs coach Ra’Shaad Samples for the same role with the Cowboys. Samples is staying with the Oregon Ducks and coach Dan Lanning instead of taking a job in the NFL. The Cowboys are hiring Derrick Foster as running backs coach, who worked with the New Orleans Saints’ running backs during the 2024 season.

Samples got a new deal with the Ducks and is expected to earn over $700,000 each of the next two years, according to a report from Joe Hoyt of DLLS Sports.

New Oregon running backs coach Ra’Shaad Samples talks with running back Jordan James during practice with the Oregon Ducks Tuesday, April 9, 2024, at the Hatfield-Dowlin Complex in Eugene, Ore. / Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Cowboys job would have been a homecoming of sorts for Samples, who graduated from Dallas Skyline High School.

Samples tweeted out "#ScoDucks" on Monday morning, which sparked reports of his return.

Lanning hired Samples, who is just 29 years old, last April from Arizona State. He is a top-10 recruiter and ranked as the No. 1 recruiter in the Pac-12 Conference in 2023. Samples was the wide receivers coach and passing game coordinator at Arizona State in 2023. In 2022, he earned the honor as the youngest position coach in the NFL as running backs coach for the Los Angeles Rams.

He is the son of Reginald Samples, the head coach at Duncanville High School who is one of the winningest high school coaches in the state of Texas. Ra’Shaad Samples was the primary recruiter for the nation's No. 1 wide receiver Dakorien Moore committed to Oregon over his hometown state's Texas Longhorns, LSU Tigers and Ohio State Buckeyes. Samples had a special relationship with Moore - Samples' father is Moore's high school head coach at Duncanville (TX).

Samples commit list also includes four-star running back Tradarian Ball (Texarkana, TX), running back Dierre Hill (Belleville, IL) and running back Jordon Davison (Mater Dei, Santa Ana, CA.)

"I mean, it feels normal. I think that's what Dan expects of me," Samples said of landing elite Texas talent in August. "That's what I expect of myself, so I mean, it's part of the job. That's what I came here to do to be able to sign some of these guys, - bring a different landscape, bringing in guys from Texas, and winning recruiting battles. It's a part of the job at this level and it's an expectation for me, it's the standard for me, it's the standard that Dan expects from me, it's why he brought me here."

Oregon Ducks head coach Dan Lanning arrives prior to the College Football Playoff quarterfinal against the Ohio State Buckeyes at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. on Jan. 1, 2025. / Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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In 2024, Samples led Oregon running backs Jordan James and Noah Whittington for a combined 1,807 rushing yards and 21 total touchdowns this season. James, specifically, had one of the best seasons for a running back in Oregon history with 1,267 rushing yards and 15 total touchdowns. James was named All-Big-Ten Second Team. 

Samples played wide receiver at Oklahoma State University and Houston University. Samples' playing career ended early as he suffered multiple serious concussions and was eventually forced to medically retire.

The Cowboys recently promoted former offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer to be their coach and Dallas looks to continue to fill out its staff.

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