Major college football program predicted to win first national championship

Oregon head coach Dan Lanning takes the field as the Oregon Ducks face the Indiana Hoosiers in the Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. | Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

On3 college football analyst J.D. PicKell said on "The Hard Count" Tuesday that one Power Five program is on the verge of winning its first-ever national championship.

PicKell argued the team’s trajectory, steady playoff advancement, staff continuity, and a strong pipeline of transfers and high-level recruits mirror the blueprint programs have followed before breaking through for a title.

That forecast came after a season in which the team made a deep College Football Playoff run, secured dominant early-round victories, and then absorbed a decisive semifinal loss that exposed areas still needing refinement.

The projection centers on a head coach that PicKell compared to other fast-rising leaders in the sport, someone he believes has recreated the same upward momentum once associated with figures like Ryan Day.

The program PicKell named was the Oregon Ducks.

“I get the same sense about Dan Lanning right now as I had when people were saying the same things about Ryan Day… Every single year, Oregon advances further than where they were a year before,” PicKell said. “I think Oregon is a matter of if not when they win a national championship. I think it's gonna happen in the next three years.”

Oregon Ducks head coach Dan Lanning leads his team onto the field prior to the 2025 Orange Bowl against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Hard Rock Stadium. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Oregon finished 13–2 (8–1 in the Big Ten), reached the CFP, and recorded two postseason wins before falling in the semifinals. The Ducks opened with a 51–34 first-round win over James Madison, followed by a dominant 23–0 Orange Bowl quarterfinal shutout of Texas Tech, before suffering a 56–22 Peach Bowl semifinal loss to No. 1 Indiana.

Even with the lopsided defeat, Oregon’s regular-season consistency and playoff performance reinforced its status among the nation’s elite, a reflection of the culture Lanning has established in Eugene.

Lanning, hired in December 2021, rose through assistant roles at Pittsburgh, Arizona State, Sam Houston State, Alabama, and Memphis before becoming Georgia’s defensive coordinator.

Now entering his fifth season at Oregon, he has delivered four straight winning campaigns, a 2024 conference title, and three consecutive top-10 national finishes, building the program around defensive identity, aggressive recruiting, and calculated use of the transfer portal.

Supporting PicKell’s projection, Lanning and his staff have aggressively stocked the roster with high-end talent positioned to contribute over the next several seasons.

Notable incoming transfers include defensive back Koi Perich, cornerback Aaron Scott Jr., tight end Andrew Olesh, and quarterback Dylan Raiola, all former blue-chip four- and five-star prospects.

On the high school front, Oregon’s 2026 signing class and early 2027 haul feature multiple four- and five-star commitments at premium positions, including offensive line, tight end, defensive back, and running back.

Headliners include five-star edge rusher Anthony Jones, top-ranked five-star safety Jett Washington, and No. 2-ranked five-star interior offensive lineman Immanuel Iheanacho, key additions that helped Oregon secure the No. 7-ranked recruiting class nationally for 2026, according to 247Sports.

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