Well, the Oregon Ducks’ head coach, Dan Lanning, overall comes off with a good report card. Under him, the Ducks reached a 13-win record – the first time in Oregon history. But do you know in which subject he got the maximum gold stars? It has to be recruiting. From 2022 to 2024, Lanning raged through the recruiting trail. He added two five-star commits and 51 four-star recruits to Oregon’s ranks! In 2024, they held the No.3 rank as per On3’s 2024 Industry Ranking football Team Recruiting Rankings.

Walking into the 2025 season, one of Lanning’s recruits is already having the spotlight on himself. That’s none other than their 3,022-yard weapon. At the same time, Lanning learns about a big update regarding his CFP fate. Now, who is the player who is going to make that possible? 

That’s none other than Makhi Hughes. Things are a bit tough for the Big Ten when it comes to the running back room. More so, for Oregon. Even though Lanning did not lose any running backs in the 2025 draft, in the 2024 season, he lost two- Jordan James and Bucky Irving. That’s when Lanning took a mission to bolster his RB room. And he came up with an interesting plan.

He got his hands on 5-star cornerback Na’em Offord, who happens to be Hughes’ younger brother. Do you remember Leonard Stephens’ report about Lanning’s new running back? “One of the toughest kids mentally and physically I’ve ever trained.” In that case, Lanning could let out a sigh of relief, as he might have been anxious about losing out on Irving.

After all, he led a strong and dependable run game in the first two years of his Ducks’ coaching chapter. That’s when Lanning took a dive in the transfer portal, bringing in Tulane running back Hughes. And the analysts can’t stop talking about him. On the May 26th episode of the On3 podcast, Ari Wasserman shared, “Makhi Hughes is the nation’s leading returning rusher. He’s a transfer from Tulane. Go watch his tape. He’s incredibly good.” Having an eye for talent, Lanning couldn’t just ignore Hughes’ stats. In two years at Tulane, he came up with 2799 rushing yards and 3,022 total yards along with 22 touchdowns. During his stint with Green Wave, he was the AAC’s Rookie of the Year in 2023, and in 2024, he was first team All-AAC.  

Wasserman then shared how Hughes often goes unnoticed. “Makhi Hughes plays the position of running back, and obviously, we don’t talk about that unless they’re Ashton Jeanty.” He then continued that Lanning can sit back and relax. “You don’t need to speculate about whether Makhi Hughes is going to be good…guy’s arms are like long enough…the French tickler (Andy Staples breaks into a laugh).” Stylistically, Hughes is a hybrid of Irving and James. His shiftiness looks like Irving’s while he has James’s pure power. As Lanning soaks in the Hughes’ hype, the head coach receives some news that might make him go happy dancing. 

Dan Lanning’s old acquaintance shows a big thumbs-up 

The Oregon Ducks have been knocking on the door of a national championship since Dan Lanning took over the reins. So, he might be needing that push to get over that hump and bring a Natty home to Eugene. Amidst Lanning’s many supporters, one of them can actually visualize him lifting the trophy. Well, that’s none other than David Pollack, who thinks that Lanning can get the job done. On his See Ball Get Ball podcast, he broke down some of the young coaches around college football. After all, for so long, college football has been ruled by the veterans.

You name them- Nick Saban, Kirby Smart, Jim Harbaugh. Last season, it was Ryan Day to break the trend. And this season, Pollack predicted that Lanning will be the next young coach to win a national championship. “I remember Dan being a young coach at Georgia. And watching him grow his family and then take the Oregon job and move. He’s on this list, and he, to me, is by far the next one to win a title.” But what makes Pollack count so highly on Lanning?

The now-Oregon head coach was the defensive coordinator at Georgia, 2019. That’s where David Pollack, a Bulldog himself, would have likely first become acquainted with Lanning. Drawing belief from his short time bond, Pollack shared, “He’s the next one in his 30s. To me, that stood out to win a title.” When it comes to his weapons, Lanning is all armed up. He just needs a blueprint built to go the distance, not fizzle out fast.