hero-image

Did Dan Lanning coach under Nick Saban? Oregon HC's professional career explored

Before becoming the head coach of Oregon Ducks, Dan Lanning gained years of experience at different levels of coaching.

Lanning began his coaching career at Park Hill South High School from 2008 until 2010. He then went to college as he worked as a graduate assistant in 2011. After one season, he joined Arizona State as a graduate assistant.

His first real job in college came in 2014, as he was the defensive back coach and co-recruiting coordinator at Sam Houston State. Lanning held that role for one season before joining Nick Saban's staff at Alabama as a graduate assistant for the 2015 season.

Did Dan Lanning coach under Nick Saban?

Yes, Dan Lanning coached under Nick Saban for one season. The lone year Lanning was at Alabama, the Crimson Tide won the National Title. That allowed the former linebacker to get more prominent roles, and he eventually became a head coach for the first time in 2022.

After spending four years at Georgia as a linebacker coach and defensive coordinator, Oregon hired him as their new coach. In 2022, he led the Ducks to a 10-3 record; this year, they are off to a 5-0 start.

What coaches have coached under Nick Saban?

Dan Lanning is not the only coach that has come from the Saban coaching tree. The list includes several big names, some of whom have gone on to lead their own programs.

Coach NameSeason coached under Nick SabanHC experience
L. C. Cole1990
Tennessee State (1996–1999), Alabama State (2000–2002), Stillman (2009–2010)
Dean Pees1990
Kent State (1998–2003)
Bobby Williams1995-1999 (MSU)2004 (LSU)2005-2006 (Dolphins)2008-2015 (Alabama)
Michigan State (2000–2002)
Mark Dantonio1995-1999 (MSU)
Cincinnati (2004–2006), Michigan State (2007–2019)
Derek Dooley2000-2006 (LSU, Miami Dolphins)2022-Present
Louisiana Tech (2007–2009), Tennessee (2010–2012)
Jimbo Fisher2000-2004 (LSU)
Florida State (2010–2017), Texas A&M (2018–2023)
Jason Garrett2005-2006 (Miami Dolphins)
Dallas Cowboys (2011–2019)
Curt Cignetti2007-2010
IUP (2011–2016), Elon (2017–2018), James Madison (2019–2023), Indiana (2024–present)
Pat Shurmur1995-1997 (MSU)
Cleveland Browns (2011–2012), New York Giants (2018–2019)
Will Muschamp2001-2004 (LSU)
Florida (2011–2014), South Carolina (2016–2020)
Mike Mularkey2006 (Miami Dolphins)
Jacksonville Jaguars (2012), Tennessee Titans (2016–2017)
Jim McElwain2008-2011
Colorado State (2012–2014), Florida (2015–2017), Central Michigan (2019–present)
Adam Gase2000-2002 (LSU)
Miami Dolphins (2016–2018), New York Jets (2019–2020)
Kirby Smart2004 (LSU)2006 (Miami Dolphins)2007-2015 (Alabama)
Georgia (2016–present)
Major Applewhite2007, 2019-2020
Houston (2016–2018), South Alabama (2024-present)
Geoff Collins2007
Temple (2017–2018), Georgia Tech (2019–2022)
Mario Cristobal2013-2016
Oregon (2017–2021), Miami (2022–present)
Lane Kiffin2014-2016
FAU (2017–2019), Ole Miss (2020–present)
Jeremy Pruitt2007-2012 2016-2017
Tennessee (2018–2020)
Billy Napier2011, 2013-2016
Louisiana (2018–2021), Florida (2022–present)
Mike Locksley2016-2018
Maryland (2019–present)
Mel Tucker1997-1998 (MSU), 2000 (LSU), 2015 (Alabama)
Colorado (2019), Michigan State (2020–2023)
Butch Jones2018-2020
Arkansas State (2021–present)
Steve Sarkisian2016 2019-2020
Texas (2021–present)
Charles Huff2019-2020
Marshall (2021–present)
Dan Lanning2015
Oregon (2022–present)
Brian Daboll1998-1999 (MSU), 2017 (Alabama)
New York Giants (2022–present)

Nick Saban questioned Dan Lanning's speech

Meanwhile, Dan Lanning went viral two weeks ago following the Oregon Ducks blowout win over the Colorado Buffaloes.

After the win, Oregon sent out a clip showing Lanning's pre-game speech, which fired up his team. However, while speaking on The Pat McAfee Show, Nick Saban said his former assistant shouldn't have done that.

"I understand what Dan I think was trying to say. And it was probably good for his team to hear in some ways. But it probably wasn't good for everybody else to hear. That's always the argument. Where does the access--where do you draw the line and say?: 'Okay there's gotta be some time when you can talk to your team and say what you have to say, and it's really not for everybody else to hear.'"

As of right now, Oregon and Alabama don't play each other this season, but that could change in the playoffs or a bowl game. Also, Dan Lanning has still not faced Nick Saban since becoming a head coach.

You may also like