Dan Lanning Receives Massive Pay Increase From Oregon With New Contract

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Dan Lanning is now one of the highest paid coaches in college football, thanks to a restructured contract with the Oregon Ducks. 

After arriving in Eugene in 2022, the first-time head football coach has gone 35-6 over three seasons, winning the Big Ten championship in the Ducks' first year as part of the conference. The fiery coach also led Oregon to the college football playoff, and has quickly risen up the ranks as one of the best coaches in the sport. 

Just one season ago, Lanning was making $8.2 million per year, but he will now be making nearly $11 million with his new 6-year contract that puts him in the same category as some of the best in college football. The deal is pending board approval, but this will get done very soon. 

The news was first reported by Yahoo Sports. 

There has certainly been an uptick in coaches receiving new deals this offseason, with Ryan Day and Lincoln Riley also getting new deals from their respective schools. After going undefeated during the regular season, along with beating Penn State for the Big Ten title, it was time for Lanning to cash-in. 

The 38-year-old head coach has quickly become one of the more likable characters in college football, with his fierce pregame speeches, and a no-nonsense type approach to how the sport continues to evolve. 

But as we head into this new era of college athletics with revenue-sharing and a potential change to the college football playoff in the near future, it is important for the school to take care of the head coach right now. 

And that's exactly what Oregon did with this new contract. Just four years ago, Lanning was the defensive coordinator for Kirby Smart at Georgia, and now he has the Ducks contending for national championships while storming through the Big Ten. 

While things are going well for Oregon, fans of USC are on-edge regarding Lincoln Riley and the Trojans' football program, which clearly shows the difference between two teams that joined the Big Ten at the same time. 

We will continue to see Oregon in the national championship conversation, as I don’t expect this Lanning train to stop anytime soon. 

For that reason alone, the Ducks athletic department decided Dan Lanning deserved to be paid as a top coach in college football. 

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Trey Wallace is the host of The Trey Wallace Podcast that focuses on a mixture of sports, culture, entertainment along with his perspective on everything from College Football to the College World Series. Wallace has been covering college sports for 15 years, starting off while attending the University of South Alabama. He’s broken some of the biggest college stories including the Florida football "Credit Card Scandal" along with the firing of Jim McElwin and Kevin Sumlin. Wallace also broke one of the biggest stories in college football in 2020 around the NCAA investigation into recruiting violations against Tennessee football head coach Jeremy Pruitt. Wallace also appears on radio across seven different states breaking down that latest news in college sports.