Dan Lanning reveals where he got this year's "double down" mantra
It turns out Dan Lanning's vow to "double down" on Oregon's culture and commitment to its values didn't come from a midnight stint at the blackjack table. Instead, it came out of a phone conversation with Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney.
At Big Ten Media Days Lanning told the story of reaching out to the two-time national champion head coach this offseason.
Lanning said, “When I was at Georgia, that was somebody I never got to visit with. They were kind of our arch nemesis, so never really had a chance to really talk to him, but I always had a lot of respect for what he did.”
The two talked for 45 minutes.
Swinney asked the 35-6 Oregon coach a pointed question. “He said, ‘Do you like your process?’ I said, ‘Yeah, I love it.’ He said, ‘Well, just double down,’” Lanning said. “I said alright, that’s it. That’s what we’ll do.”
While the idea of sticking with what works and remaining committed to your process isn't novel, it's good that the fourth-year head coach is always seeking new perspectives and looking to improve his program. Getting the opportunity to pick the brain of one of the top three coaches in the game was a sound move.
Alexander Turri of "Clemson Wire" covered the story in Las Vegas.
“We’ve done an unbelievable job of building this team over time,” Lanning said. “The process works. We’re close. That’s what’s going to feed our program this offseason and into fall camp — believing in the process.”
So in 2025, the Ducks are not backing down from what built their success, they're doubling down.
President Trump issues executive order to save college sports, but will it?
Thursday from the White House President Trump issued a five-page executive order entitled, “SAVING COLLEGE SPORTS,” aimed at curbing the excesses of NIL and the chaotic pressures it's created around escalating player salaries, including an existential threat to women's and nonrevenue sports.
Ross Dellenger of CBS Sports broke down the order and its ramifications in a story Thursday.
In the text, the Trump Administration writes, “Waves of recent litigation against collegiate athletics governing rules have eliminated limits on athlete compensation, pay-for-play recruiting inducements, and transfers between universities, unleashing a sea change that threatens the viability of college sports.”
Dan Lanning says all deals Oregon has submitted to the NIL Go clearinghouse, "have all gone through." pic.twitter.com/6qmTJJ7DVG
— The Big Ten Huddle 🎙️ (@TheBigTenHuddle) July 23, 2025
Oregon's not likely to have trouble with the new executive order, because they're attentive and responsive to changes in policy and the realities of the marketplace. So far all of their deals have been approved by the clearinghouse.
For college football as a whole, Dellenger writes, the order directs the National Labor Relations Board to clarify the status of athletes and attempts to provide some guidelines, structure and stability in an era of $50 million rosters even as the SCORE Act works its way through Congress.
While we try to avoid politics, sometimes sports and politics collide. The sport needs some guardrails, but it's unclear whether this will provide them in a meaningful way.
Men's Track and Field signs a top hurdler from Iowa
Oregon Track landed Hawkeye hurdler Kai Graves-Blanks from the transfer portal Thursday. Graves-Blanks finished second at the Big Ten Championships in the 110 meter hurdles with a time of 13.51.
Oregon T&F keeps reloading with new transfers. https://t.co/7AyMVtX4os
— Eric Hovland (@EricJHovland) July 23, 2025
Earlier this month the Ducks added Mykolas Alekna from Oklahoma State, the world record holder in the discus, and Peyton Bair, NCAA decathlon champion. The track and field team appears to be doubling down too.