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Dan Lanning Goes Shirtless With Pat McAfee On ESPN's College GameDay

Before the top-10 matchup with the No. 3 Oregon Ducks and No. 7 Indiana Hoosiers, Oregon coach Dan Lanning and ESPN's College GameDay cast member Pat McAfee took off their shirts to fire up the Ducks crowd early in the morning.
Charlie Viehl|
Oregon head coach Dan Lanning, left, and host Pat McAfee strip off their shirts to rally the crowd during ESPN’s “College GameDay” on the campus of the University of Oregon on Oct. 11, 2025, in Eugene, Oregon.
Oregon head coach Dan Lanning, left, and host Pat McAfee strip off their shirts to rally the crowd during ESPN’s “College GameDay” on the campus of the University of Oregon on Oct. 11, 2025, in Eugene, Oregon. | Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Before the No. 3 Oregon Ducks and No. 7 Indiana Hoosiers square off from inside Autzen Stadium, ESPN's College GameDay was on Oregon's campus to preview the top-10 matchup, and Ducks coach Dan Lanning joined the popular morning show. In order to pump up the home crowd, Lanning and GameDay analyst Pat McAfee took off their shirts on national television.

Before taking off his shirt, Lanning spoke about his team and Oregon's matchup with Indiana. Legendary Alabama coach Nick Saban asked Lanning a question about Autzen Stadium and how Ducks fans can have an impact against Indiana, and Saban insinuated that Lanning should take matters into his own hands before the game.

With little hesitation, Lanning and McAfee turned towards the crowd, took off their shirts, and led the fans in "Sco Ducks" chants.

Oregon head coach Dan Lanning and Pat McAfee strip off their shirts to rally the crowd during ESPN’s “College GameDay
Oregon head coach Dan Lanning, left, and host Pat McAfee strip off their shirts to rally the crowd during ESPN’s “College GameDay” on the campus of the University of Oregon on Oct. 11, 2025, in Eugene, Oregon. | Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"We have the best fans in college football. I can't wait to see them do their thing today," Lanning said.

Lanning did more than take off his shirt, however. The Ducks coach previewed Oregon's matchup with Indiana and talked about the maturity of his young roster.

What Dan Lanning Said on ESPN's College GameDay

Saban asked Lanning how the Ducks are planning to defend Indiana's offense, one that features run-pass options to keep opposing defenses guessing.

"In a game like this, you kind of have to cheat the system. We're kind of halfway on this, and a little halfway on that. I always tell our players, 'You got to farm your lanes. Everybody's got a job. Do your job. Don't worry about doing somebody else's.' It'll be big to be able to take away their big wideouts on the perimeter, and they've got a great run game that we've got to be able to handle with the defensive line and the linebackers up front," said Lanning.

Oregon Ducks Dan Lanning Indiana Hoosiers Nick Saban Kirk Herbstreit Pat McAfee Curt Cignetti Big Ten Autzen Stadium
Pat McAfee, right, talks to Kirk Herbstreit on the set of ESPN College GameDay prior to the NCAA football game between the Ohio State Buckeyes and the Texas Longhorns at Ohio Stadium on Aug. 30, 2025. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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After winning the Big Ten Championship with an undefeated regular season in 2024, Oregon lost 10 players to the NFL Draft, a program record. The GameDay crew asked Lanning about replacing all of that talent, and if the Oregon coach knew that the 2025 version of the Ducks could have the same success.

"Coach (Saban) can relate to this. You never really know what you have until you get out there and start playing football. And I knew we were losing a lot of players to the NFL and some transition, I was curious how mature we were gonna be as a team, because we're a young team. These guys are really mature," said Lanning.

Oregon Ducks head coach Dan Lanning reacts after defeating the Penn State Nittany Lions at Beaver Stadium.
Sep 27, 2025; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Oregon Ducks head coach Dan Lanning reacts after defeating the Penn State Nittany Lions at Beaver Stadium. | James Lang-Imagn Images

"We do yoga every Thursday, and our yoga instructor at the end was like, 'This was the best yoga session I've ever seen.' You've got a bunch of freshmen out here focused, locked in doing their thing. So the maturity of this group, how much they love their teammates, how excited they get to go block as opposed to catch the ball and impact the game," Lanning continued. "Those are things that kind of separate this group."

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Charlie Viehl
CHARLIE VIEHL

Charlie Viehl is the deputy editor for the Oregon Ducks, Colorado Buffaloes, and USC Trojans on SI. He has written hundreds of articles for SI and has covered events like the Big Ten Championship and College Football Playoff Quarterfinals at the Rose Bowl. While pursuing a career in sports journalism, he is also a lifelong musician, holding a degree in Music and Philosophy from Boston College. A native of Pasadena, California, he covered sports across Los Angeles while at Loyola High School and edited the Gabelli Presidential Scholars Program’s magazine at BC. He is excited to bring his passion for storytelling and sports to fans of college athletics.

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