Good News For The Oregon Ducks As Dan Lanning Climbs National Coaching Ranks Amid Postseason Struggles
Dan Lanning has climbed to No. 5 in the 2025 CBS Sports/247Sports head coach rankings after just three seasons at the helm of the Oregon Ducks.
Lanning led Oregon to an impressive debut in the Big Ten, capturing the conference title and finishing the regular season undefeated at 13-0. The Ducks held the No. 1 spot in national polls for seven consecutive weeks.
However, their postseason run faltered in the College Football Playoff. Oregon was upset by No. 8 seed Ohio State in the Rose Bowl, falling 41-21 after trailing 34-0 late in the first half.
Lanning ranked No. 9 in the same poll just a year ago, reflecting a significant rise in national coaching stature.
2025 Top Head Coach Rankings:
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Kirby Smart – Georgia
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Ryan Day – Ohio State
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Dabo Swinney – Clemson
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Steve Sarkisian – Texas
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Dan Lanning – Oregon
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Marcus Freeman – Notre Dame
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James Franklin – Penn State
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Brian Kelly – LSU
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Kalen DeBoer – Alabama
- Matt Campbell – Iowa State
The 2025 @CBSSportsCFB Coach Rankings are here 📈
Do y'all agree?
Full 1-25 🔗 https://t.co/zRlOKsFKjy
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— CBS Sports College Football 🏈 (@CBSSportsCFB) May 22, 2025
Despite having losing records in 2024, Mike Norvell, Lance Leipold, and Kyle Whittingham still earned spots in the Top 25 rankings. Lincoln Riley, meanwhile, holds a modest 15-11 record over his past two seasons at USC.
Mario Cristobal also secured a place in the rankings after going 10-3 last season, though his first two years at Miami were underwhelming at 5-7 and 7-6. Former Oregon assistant Kenny Dillingham made his debut at No. 18 after leading Arizona State to the playoffs—despite preseason projections placing the Sun Devils at the bottom of the Big 12.
Dan Lanning said, "I've always felt your best teams are what I call player-led teams."
"The coaches aren't in the room, I think it speaks to the character of the players."
The best teams are player-led.
They don’t wait to be told – they live the standard every day. pic.twitter.com/lvYU5Sh836
— Coach AJ 🎯 Mental Fitness (@coachajkings) April 16, 2025
Dan Lanning broke into the Top Five even though postseason success has eluded Oregon. The Ducks lost twice to Kalen DeBoer’s Washington in 2023 and suffered a lopsided playoff loss to Ohio State in 2024 after an otherwise dominant season. Still, Lanning’s 35-6 overall record and three consecutive top-10 recruiting classes helped solidify his rising reputation.
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