Dan Lanning Previews Portland State Matchup
Oregon Ducks head coach Dan Lanning previews a week 1 matchup against the Portland State Vikings.
Transcript
00:00 - All right, it's finally here.
00:02 So I'm certainly excited about having game week.
00:05 It's fun for us to be able to have a home game first.
00:08 You know, I'm excited to see our fans out there.
00:10 I know we'll have a great crowd,
00:12 be a great environment for our players
00:13 to get to go experience.
00:14 Like I've said several times,
00:15 our guys are ready to hit somebody else
00:17 and it'd be fun to play a team
00:19 that's right up from this region as well
00:20 and in Portland State.
00:21 And certainly a coach that I have a lot of respect for.
00:24 So it should be a fun game for us.
00:26 - Start right over here on the right with Zach.
00:29 - You talked before about taking extensive notes
00:31 based on what you guys do every practice, every day.
00:34 Has your game day preparation changed at all from last year?
00:37 And if so, will you detail at all how it has changed?
00:40 - Not a ton.
00:41 You know, I mean, the process is still somewhat the process.
00:44 You know, little notes here and there
00:46 from how we practice,
00:46 what we feel like we have to practice
00:48 that we get the best out of.
00:49 But I don't know that any of that would speak necessarily
00:51 to your question.
00:53 More than anything, you know,
00:54 we found that we get a lot of good work
00:56 when we do a lot more good on good periods in practice.
00:58 We've created a lot more of those.
01:00 - Right here in the middle, Eric.
01:03 - Dan, you mentioned last week
01:04 that it was maybe a little premature
01:05 to start talking Portland State, but now we're here.
01:06 Can you just talk about offensively what they do
01:08 that challenges defenses and then the opposite for-
01:10 - Yeah, the biggest thing is their quarterback
01:12 is extremely dynamic.
01:14 You know, he's a guy that's really fast.
01:17 It shows up, you can see it.
01:18 You watch their explosive play tape really quick.
01:20 You realize that he's a guy that, you know,
01:22 has the ball in his hands.
01:23 They have one of the deeper target areas
01:27 for as far as throws down the field.
01:28 They throw it, you know, down the field quite a bit.
01:31 I think, you know, average targets over 12 yards,
01:34 you know, for them from a passing game standpoint.
01:37 And then they have a couple, you know,
01:39 dynamic players that they've done a good job using
01:41 on that side of the ball.
01:42 Defensively, they have some guys that, you know,
01:45 run to the ball, play like their hair's on fire.
01:47 It's kind of an exotic scheme.
01:48 It'll be interesting to see.
01:49 I know they've had some changes, you know, staff-wise
01:52 and how they manage things on that side.
01:54 But you kind of have to prepare for everything
01:56 that you've seen on film from there,
01:57 or even, you know, previous schools
01:59 that these coaches have been at to prepare for them.
02:02 Front left, James.
02:05 Will Nishad and JPJ be able to go this week?
02:07 Yeah, I think so.
02:09 Nishad will be a question.
02:10 JPJ was practicing with us today.
02:12 He was doing great.
02:14 Back right, Jar.
02:16 Last year, you said Jake Van Dine
02:17 kind of helped you get ready for some of those
02:19 dual-threat quarterbacks as a scout team, QB.
02:21 So who, for you, right now, this week,
02:23 is kind of helping you on the scout team
02:25 get ready for that type of player?
02:26 Yeah, Brock Thomas has been doing a phenomenal job
02:28 for us on that side.
02:30 He's completed some passes.
02:31 He's had some success running the ball as well.
02:33 You know, that really translates back to what he did
02:35 when he was in high school in Sheldon.
02:37 Front left, James.
02:40 Defensively, will Justin and Kamari be able to go?
02:44 Yeah, I think we should have our guys available.
02:47 Right now, we're still waiting to see,
02:48 you know, what it looks like as we get closer.
02:51 We have some guys that still have to get healthy.
02:53 Front right, Zach.
02:54 You said last week when we talked to you,
02:55 you have great respect for Coach Barnum.
02:57 What's that relationship like with you guys?
02:58 Have you been able to meet him several times,
03:00 and what is it about him that, you know,
03:02 you have such great respect for?
03:03 Yeah, I've just got to see him.
03:04 We've been at some, you know, these satellite camps
03:06 that you do as coaches, you know, in the offseason,
03:09 and these mega camps that you go to,
03:11 I've got to be around him a few times there.
03:12 He's a really personable guy,
03:14 and then, obviously, to be able to be in a place
03:16 for nine years, you must be doing something right,
03:18 and he's done it for a long time.
03:19 So, just respect for a guy that's coaching
03:22 there at Portland State and how he's built his career.
03:25 Back right, Trevor.
03:27 Just on a personal level, you know,
03:28 with all the anticipation, the preparation, the excitement,
03:31 what does the night before a game look like for you?
03:33 Are you preparing until the last second?
03:35 Are you trying to relax and wind a little bit?
03:36 What does that look like for you?
03:38 Yeah, we try to -- I mean, I try to prepare.
03:40 You know, certainly at the end of the night,
03:42 I'll kind of sit down and go through what's --
03:44 you know, play the game in my mind before the game's played
03:46 and make some additional notes for myself
03:47 that I want to hit in the morning with staff.
03:50 Yeah, I just try to get into an easy spot
03:52 where I can figure out what's next for us, but...
03:56 Back in the middle there.
03:58 How did you feel your guys have approached the last 48 hours
04:00 now that it is game week? Is there a shift at all?
04:02 Is it all kind of the same as what you saw in fall?
04:04 I guess I'm just curious from an energy kind of effort level
04:06 what you've seen this week so far.
04:07 Yeah, I think our guys have had great effort
04:09 and great energy.
04:10 They know it's game week.
04:11 There's been a buzz around the building.
04:12 You know, we finally get to go play somebody else,
04:16 but they've had good juice and energy this entire week.
04:19 All the way in the back, Brad.
04:21 Last week, Tosh talked about how the first game of the season
04:24 in the bowl game is when you see mistakes made
04:26 just because of the rust and the dull between the games.
04:30 What are things beyond, obviously, a win
04:31 that you hope to see play out, regardless of score outcome,
04:35 that makes -- you know, show you guys played a clean game?
04:37 Yeah, I think that's one of the things
04:38 that we've shown our players.
04:39 You know, there's more turnovers in college football
04:41 in week one and then in the bowl week
04:44 than there is at any other time this season.
04:46 There's more missed tackles in week one
04:48 and in the bowl game than there is any other time of season.
04:50 That's because of the long vacancy between games.
04:53 So, starting there.
04:54 But ultimately, you know, college football
04:56 is still about explosive plays and takeaways, right?
04:59 So, those are things that we want to create,
05:01 you know, defensively as far as takeaways,
05:03 and offensively, we want to create explosives.