Has Oregon Football Turned the Corner in Fall Camp Under Dan Lanning?

The Ducks appear to be falling into a groove with just under three weeks until their season opener.

Author:
Eric Berniker
Publish date:
Aug 18, 2022 3:25 PM EDT

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While the Oregon Ducks have yet to play a game under the new coaching regime, reviews in Eugene have become increasingly positive as both the coaches and players establish their tendencies.

This week, Lanning noted that the team had their best practice of fall camp.

“I think in general our guys are starting to take ownership of what practice looks like, '' Lanning said on Tuesday. “I think guys just came out here with the right mindset saying you know what, I want to get better today, I'm not looking for today to be just another day.”

Throughout fall camp Lanning has stressed the concept of getting 1% better every day. The concept is rooted in the idea of an unattainable standard of perfection, something that can be hard to get players to buy in on, but when harnessed, the concept can yield unlimited improvement.

Since the start of fall camp, some practices have been described as “sluggish” by players and Lanning has noted wanting to see more from his team. Now, players and coaches leave the field excited by the progress the team is making.

“Today was a little bit of a lighter day for us, '' wide receiver Chase Cota said. “We had the spiders on but I think we were real fast during the short practice.”

Both Lanning and Cota described the criteria for judging a practice as heavily reliant on speed and energy. Lanning has repeatedly emphasized that both have to come from player-led initiative and can't be simply coached.

“I feel like you can just feel the energy in between periods if there's some noise going on and really if everyone's flying around,” Cota said. “I think it's really kind of once the play’s over down the field when people are finishing is how you can tell.”

Among the players putting in the extra effort to keep the team energy up has been sophomore Justin Flowe.

Cota noted that earlier this week, Flowe chased down running back Sean Dollars on a breakaway run, saving a touchdown and galvanizing the team.

“I don't even know if he made the play,” Cota said, “But chase him down on a super long run from way behind, that was a memorable one for sure.”

Plays like Flowe’s extra effort to save a touchdown are becoming increasingly talked about and common as the Ducks practice under Lanning's four pillars of sacrifice, growth, connection, and toughness.

Appearing in only one game a season ago in which he accounted for 14 tackles and was named Pac-12 defensive player of the week, Flowe’s return and imminent pairing with Noah Sewell is cause for excitement among Ducks fans.

With just under three weeks until the Ducks kick off their season, there's still ample time for the improvement-hungry Ducks to take the steps necessary to ready themselves for championship-level play.