"I never really worried about how much I made": Dan Lanning looks back at struggling GA days to being a HC of Big Ten program
Dan Lanning couldn't have asked for anything better, given how his life has changed in the last decade. From someone who earned $1,200 per month to being one of the highest-paid coaches in college football, it was never an easy route. There were a lot of challenges and limited decent opportunities, but he waited for the big fish.
Working under legends of the game like Nick Saban, Kirby Smart, Mario Cristobal, Billy Napier and Mel Tucker gave him a lot of exposure and understanding of the true essence of football coaching. In no time, the Oregon opportunity came while he was still a graduate assistant at Alabama. Lanning was more than ready and grabbed the opportunity to make the Ducks a Big Ten powerhouse.
Looking back at his journey, he shared how he navigated through hard times. Lanning used food stamps and survived with a paycheck of $1,200 as a GA. He shared his story on Tuesday's episode of the “Bussin' with the Boys” podcast.
“I think back to that a lot, I feel so unbelievably blessed to get to do what I do, and the place that I get to do it, and who I get to do it with, but none of it would have happened,” Lanning said (1:24:00). “I always, what I always think about is, what if I didn't do that right? The pain of regret, you know, versus the pain of discipline. I always chased opportunities. I never really worried about how much I made. God always made sure we had enough to take care of, you know, take care of the house. And we never really wanted for more, like we felt like we had what we needed.
And now I'm always sitting here saying, like, what if I didn't get in the car, drive to Pitt? What if I didn't, you know, go to Arizona State and instead run back to coach high school football (in) Missouri, you know, what if I didn't leave Sam, Houston State, to go be a GA for the greatest football coach of all time, Coach Saban.”
Dan Lanning is on the heels of building a new dynasty
Unlike other football programs in the country that are engaged in marketing and drawing support from big sharks in the form of NIL collectives, Oregon is slowly making noise with its on-field performance. Dan Lanning joined the program in 2022, where the team put up a 10-3 record, and the following season, finished 12-2.
The 2024 campaign was massive, with the Ducks finishing atop the Big Ten with a 13-1 record and punching a Rose Bowl ticket. They were in contention to reach the national championship game. With its exponential trajectory over the last three years, Oregon could lift the golden trophy soon.