How Dan Lanning fared in comparison to other Oregon first-year head coaches
A lot of time after the end of the 2022 college football season has been spent looking at first-year head coaches and assessing how they did at their respective programs.
For Dan Lanning, the season-long grades have been quite fair, with many crediting him and his team for an impressive 10-win season that resulted in a respectable bowl win and a heap of excitement and anticipation for the future in Eugene. While a lot of time has been spent comparing Lanning to other first-year head coaches in the nation, we wanted to take a second to look back at Oregon history and see how he compares to other Oregon coaches in their first years with the Ducks.
Lanning was able to notch 10 wins, but losses to both Oregon State and Washington were tough to swallow. How does that compare to the likes of Mario Cristobal, or Mark Helfrich, or Mike Bellotti?
In order to get a good breakdown, I went back through what I like to refer to as the “modern era” of Oregon coaches. While the Ducks have been around since 1894, a total of 39 head coaches came through the program, oftentimes only spending one or two seasons in Eugene. Until the legendary Len Casanova came along in 1951, no single coach had spent more than 5 seasons with the program. So that’s going to be where I start our modern era. Since 1951, there have been only 11 head coaches at Oregon.
How did Lanning’s first year compare to the other 10 guys when it comes to the start of their tenures in Eugene? Let’s take a look:
Don Read (1974-1976)
Otto Greule Jr. /Allsport
First Season Record: 2-9 (0-7 Pac-12)
Bowl Game Result: None
Victory over Washington Huskies: No
Victory over Oregon State Beavers: No
Overall Record at Oregon: 9-24
Jerry Frei (1967-1971)
(Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)
First Season Record: 2-8 (1-5 Pac-12)
Bowl Game Result: None
Victory over Washington Huskies: No
Victory over Oregon State Beavers: No
Overall Record at Oregon: 22-29
Len Casanova (1951-1966)
(Kirby Lee via AP)
First Season Record: 2-8 (1-6 Pac-12)
Bowl Game Result: None
Victory over Washington Huskies: No
Victory over Oregon State Beavers: No
Overall Record at Oregon: 82-73
Rich Brooks (1977-1994)
First Season Record: 2-9 (1-6 Pac-12)
Bowl Game Result: None
Victory over Washington Huskies: No
Victory over Oregon State Beavers: Yes
Overall Record at Oregon: 91-109
Dick Enright (1972-1973)
(Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images)
First Season Record: 4-7 (2-5 Pac-12)
Bowl Game Result: None
Victory over Washington Huskies: No
Victory over Oregon State Beavers: Yes
Overall Record at Oregon: 6-16
Willie Taggart (2017)
Scott Olmos-USA TODAY Sports
First Season Record: 7-5 (4-5 Pac-12)
Highest AP Poll Ranking in 1st Year: 24th
Bowl Game Result: Loss — Las Vegas Bowl vs. Boise State (38-26)*
Victory over Washington Huskies: No
Victory over Oregon State Beavers: Yes
Overall Record at Oregon: 7-5
*Willie Taggart did not coach in the bowl game, instead leaving for Florida State at the end of the regular season.
Mario Cristobal (2017-2021)
Joseph Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports
First Season Record: 9-4 (5-4 Pac-12)
Highest AP Poll Ranking in 1st Year: 12th
Bowl Game Result: Win — Red Box Bowl vs. Michigan State (7-6)
Victory over Washington Huskies: Yes
Victory over Oregon State Beavers: Yes
Overall Record at Oregon: 35-13
Mike Bellotti (1995-2008)
(Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Getty Images)
First Season Record: 9-3 (6-2 Pac-12)
Highest AP Poll Ranking in 1st Year: 10th
Bowl Game Result: Loss — Cotton Bowl vs. Colorado (33-6)
Victory over Washington Huskies: Yes
Victory over Oregon State Beavers: Yes
Overall Record at Oregon: 116-55
Dan Lanning (2022-Present)
Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
First Season Record: 10-3 (7-2 Pac-12)
Highest AP Poll Ranking in 1st Year: 6th
Bowl Game Result: Win — Holiday Bowl vs. North Carolina (28-27)
Victory over Washington Huskies: No
Victory over Oregon State Beavers: No
Overall Record at Oregon: 10-3
Chip Kelly (2009-2012)
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
First Season Record: 10-3 (8-1 Pac-12)
Highest AP Poll Ranking in 1st Year: 7th
Bowl Game Result: Loss — Rose Bowl vs. Ohio State (26-17)
Victory over Washington Huskies: Yes
Victory over Oregon State Beavers: Yes
Overall Record at Oregon: 46-7
Mark Helfrich (2013-2016)
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
First Season Record: 11-2 (7-2 Pac-12)
Highest AP Poll Ranking in 1st Year: 2nd
Bowl Game Result: Win — Alamo Bowl vs. Texas (30-7)
Victory over Washington Huskies: Yes
Victory over Oregon State Beavers: Yes
Overall Record at Oregon: 37-16
