He's done it every signing day. Dan Lanning's four recruiting classes have ranked, in order since the first one two weeks after he stepped off the private plane in December 2021 with his wife and three boys, 16, 9, 4, and 3 in the 247Sports Composite.
In every one of those years, he's pulled off a flip or two in the last days or hours before signing day.
Of course not every flip or recruit signing works out. But football is a game of numbers, and Lanning's combination of ruthlessness, relentlessness, relationships and old-fashioned NIL bags of cash has netted the Ducks some big shocks in the closing days of the recruiting cycle year after year.
In December 2024 (2025 recruiting class) Lanning nabbed Na'eem Offord from Ohio State, one of the nation's best defensive backs, quarterback Jaron Keawe Sagapolutele from Cal, and edge rusher Tobi Haastrup, all signing-day surprises and top-rated players. Offord and Haastrup are still with the Ducks, and the Birmingham, Alabama five-star is very likely to earn significant playing time as a freshman.
Sagapolutele spent a couple weeks with the Ducks at Rose Bowl practice, and decided he wanted to go somewhere where he could start right away. He went back to Cal, a tacit endorsement of Dante Moore's hold on the Oregon starting job.
In 2023, Lanning flipped wide receivers Jeremiah McClellan from Ohio State and Ryan Pellum from USC. In his first class the Georgia national champion defensive coordinator plucked Josh Conerly and Jordan James, cornerback Daylen Austin, Jayden Limar and four-star quarterback Austin Novosad, Novosad from home-state school Baylor.
Lanning succeeds at this not just because he's well-funded. He excels at 1) keeping doors open and 2) recognizing opportunity. Coaching changes, hot seats, declining programs and deteriorating cultures are opportunities.
In the current class there are some opportunities to watch, including a huge one in five-star edge rusher Zion Elee.
Currently committed to Maryland, where head coach Mike Locksley is coming off a 4-8 season and has never lost less than five games in five full seasons there, Elee is rated the No. 1 recruit in the country according to On3 Sports.
He's a Matayo Uigalelei/Kayvon Thibodeaux caliber talent rushing the passer, 6-4, 220 with 4.4 speed in the 40 and an 80-inch wingspan. Billy Tucker of the UC report calls him "The most athletic edge rusher we have ever evaluated."
Elee is a monster, fast and technically sound. His motor, the moves and intensity of pursuit are all exceptional. He wrecks the pocket and speeds up a quarterback's mental clock even on the downs he doesn't clean it.
Elee committed to his home-state Terrapins in December 2024, but if the Terps struggle this year as they are expected to, there may be a window of opportunity as the season winds down. Trust that Lanning is prepared to work his magic.
With recruiting commit season starting to wind down, it's time to start moving our eyes towards "Flip Season". We know Dan Lanning flips with the best of them, and a former Oregon prediction would top the list closer to signing day. pic.twitter.com/JDZDlq6RpO
— Ted Leroux (@TedontheDucks) July 21, 2025
Situations like this occur all over football and the Oregon staff remains alert every fall for developments and opportunities. Lincoln Riley at USC has one of the hottest seats in the Big Ten after back-to-back seasons of 8-5 and 7-6. Jedd Fisch put up 6-7 in his first year at UW.
It could be that both the Trojans and the Huskies achieve and overachieve in 2025. If they don't, Oregon's recruiting land shark will pounce on Kodi Greene and Talanoa Ili. It's a seasonal tradition as reliable as Clark Griswold overdoing it with the Christmas lights.