Oregon Ducks College Football Pregame Quote, 10/28/2024

Opening statement:

Lanning: “All right, great recap from this past weekend. I thought our fans were awesome, and it’s a fun game for our players. It was a physical game, but I thought our guys went out there and competed and did a great job. But certainly excited about the challenge in front of us now, going to Michigan, talented team. You know, they’ve been last I look, they’ve got five guys that are projected to be drafted in the first round. They’ve got talent across the board, and, you know, certainly have the ability to play a really good game. So it’s going to be a good challenge for our guys, especially, making the trip there, to a place that we haven’t been before.”

‚ÄåQ: What have you made of Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant?

Lanning: “You watch them and they’re game wreckers, right? They’re guys that you have to have a game plan for. But 78, 55 both, they make an impact. You know, consistent in the game. They beat, you know, single blocks. They’re certainly good against double teams, they’re good against the run and the pass. So they’re guys that you have to spend time and effort for. And you know, anytime you have guys like that up front, it makes it easier to cover in the back end.”

Q: What makes Josaiah Stewart so effective off the edge?

Lanning: “Yeah, it’s power and twitch. Again, plays with power, but also has speed and twitch and ability. So it’s not just; certainly not a finesse rusher. You know, he plays it a certain way, but he’s a talented guy.”

‚ÄåQ: What makes Colston Loveland a dangerous threat at tight end?

Lanning: “Yeah, it means versatile. They use him in a lot of different ways. He’s the guy that you have to know where he’s on the field at all times. They move him all over the place. He can split out at wide out and be one of the best wide outs in the field, and then line up, you know, the backfield, or line up a tight end and be the best at that position. So he’s a really talented player that they’re going to find ways to use. He’s an important piece of their offense.”

‚ÄåQ: Do you feel like Michigan’s run defense is an area you can attack?

Lanning: “Well, I mean, it’s something we’re preparing for, is the ability to be able to run the ball on a team like this. I think that’s important. When you play in games like this, they’ve always been a really physical run game team, they’ve always done a good job of running well. And I think our our offense and our team are most efficient when we have a good run game going. So that’d be an important piece for us to try to figure out.”

‚ÄåQ: Why do you feel like your team has been able to bounce back from injuries so well this year?

Lanning: “I think a lot of it is credit to our players not waiting for their moment to step up, but stepping up and being prepared for their moment. We’ve had a lot of guys that maybe they weren’t going to be the guy that took a ton of the reps at the beginning, and the reps have increased as their productions increased. And, you know, you say the beginning of every season like, I don’t know if people realize what this guy’s role might become. Still, we’ve had a lot of guys’ roles that have grown because of availability, availability, and availability, but they were also ready for those moments when those moments came.”

‚ÄåQ: Was there an explanation on the non fumble review against Illinois?

Lanning: “They ruled it forward progress.”

‚ÄåQ: Sounds like Will Johnson will be a game time decision. What does he bring to Michigan’s defense when he’s on the field?

Lanning: “He’s a great player. He’s a great player. He has ball production. He gets in and out of breaks. He’s able to take away a side of the field. So he’s definitely a guy that would make an impact.”

‚ÄåQ: Why do you feel like it’s so important for your team to have the mindset about not caring where the polls rank them?

Lanning: “I just don’t think we’ve ever measured ourself based on what other people think. And that doesn’t necessarily change. And we have our own internal goals that you know, in our plan of what we want to be. And really, at the beginning of every year, everybody asked me what success looked like. And to me, it looks like us playing our best football at the end of the season. So that’s our goal, is to put ourselves in position to play our best football and focus on the process, not the result.”

Q: What stands out about QB Davis Warren and the difficulties of preparing for multiple quarterbacks?

Lanning: “Yeah, and then obviously, Orji played in the last game as well. So it’s different based on who’s in the game. They’re both capable, and they can win in different ways, right? But, you know, I think he’s played well in the last game, and I think getting in a rhythm and find some consistency is probably important for them. But they both can beat you in different ways. They can throw the ball. Obviously, they do a great job of establishing the run game, and that’s something that 10 [Orji] will bring in a little bit more as he comes in, but he’s also proven to have the ability to pass. So you have to prepare for a little bit more when you have to go against, you know, a team like this. We’ve had some longer weeks at times when we play Friday games, this is not one of those situations. So it’s a matter of you making sure that you can be sound and simple for your guys but also create some complicated, you know, looks for the opponent.”

‚ÄåQ: What have you heard about playing in the Big House?

Lanning: “I heard it’s big. Yeah, I heard it’s big. That’s one of the things I think that’s exciting about being this conference, is getting the opportunity to play at some historic places. And this is certainly a historic place.”

‚ÄåQ: What will go into determining if players will redshirt or not?

Lanning: “We’ll keep that in house. We always make the best decision for the players on our team and our team.”

‚ÄåQ: What did you and the team learn about traveling after the trip to Purdue?

Lanning: “Yeah, just experience, more than anything, just the experience being able to do that. Traveling for games is not new. It’s not like we didn’t travel for games last year, but this is certainly longer distance, and we’ll continue to adapt and prepare.”

‚ÄåQ: How has Justius Lowe’s development played out?

Lanning: “I mean, I’m just really proud of, more than anything, Justius, when he first got here, he’s dinged up with some injuries, and it kind of limited his ability to be on the field. And we always felt like if he was a guy that was available, he was going to be a guy that can make an impact. And I think, you know, he’s probably had a little bit of a chip on his shoulder, because you realize, ‘Hey, I haven’t been available,’ and he’s playing tough, right? More than anything, I tell you that Justius Lowe’s playing tough football, right? He’s become one of our best blockers in that room, but he also runs really precise routes. He’s a guy you can line up at any position and trust that he’s going to do his job. So again, I think he’s stepped up and grown every single year, every single week, and become one of the guys that we all have a lot of faith in when he’s out there on the field.”

‚ÄåQ: Is there a progress report on Terrance Ferguson or Jordan Burch?

Lanning: “I think that we have guys that are questionable, that are going to practice with it this this week. Both those guys were available to practice today, but we’ll again, put our players, you know, best interest in mind as we prepare for this week.”

‚ÄåQ: How prepared do you feel your team is to use silent counts if necessary this week?

Lanning: “Yeah, we always prepare for it. So we prepare for it in games or not in games that it’ll be necessary. So it’s something we carry all the way through fall camp. And you always have a plan based on if it’s something that’s necessary or not, and assess it when you get there.”

‚ÄåQ: What was your favorite costume from the Halloween party last night?

Lanning: “That’s a good question. Seeing Coach Stein dress up in Paw Patrol was pretty good. I’m trying to think of what else was out there. I think the Lupoi boys were Mario and Luigi, so, those were pretty good looks.”

‚ÄåQ: How will your experiences with three top-25 wins help this week?

Lanning: “I mean, we’re getting an opportunity to play the reigning national champions, right? And in this conference it’s hard every single week, so we know that we’ll get their best. So it’s exciting to you know, have a chance. We got to play some games that are fun for us so far this year and challenging, and this will certainly be a challenge.”

Q: Is there any update on JacQawn McRoy or Khamari Terrell?

Lanning: “I think they’ll both be good.”

‚ÄåQ: What makes Michigan’s running back room so impressive?

Lanning: “Yeah, just more than anything, they don’t go down on first contact. They’re guys that break tackles. They do a great job of winning at the point of attack. Their offensive line moves people. This is one of the better offensive lines that we’ve gone against, if not the best. And again, they’re always adding extra hats, whether it’s another tight end, you know, full back body types, at times, they do a great job of getting that extra asset at the point of attack.”