Friday night’s game between Oregon and Minnesota will be the first time Dan Lanning and P.J. Fleck have faced off as head coaches.
Lanning has quickly risen up the coaching ranks from Memphis linebackers coach to Georgia outside linebackers coach to Georgia defensive coordinator and now the head man at Oregon, all since Fleck took over the Minnesota job in 2017. At 39 years old, he has become one of the hottest names in coaching.
“I’ve gotten to get to know [Fleck] a little bit more since our move to the Big Ten here. Everything I thought I knew about P.J. is not really what I knew. He’s an unbelievable human, has a cause, believes in what he believes in,” Lanning said at his weekly press conference.
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Fleck also had a quick ascension, becoming a power conference head coach before he was 40 years old. He has become one of the most polarizing figures in the college football head coaching world, and Lanning is just the latest to give him his respect.
“You watch his team play, and you can see it on film. The energy that they play with. How they do things. I think he’s just a guy who does it the right way. He has been very consistent with his message and how he attacks. He challenges you in a lot of ways, all phases, prepares the right way, so you know, just a lot of respect for him and his program,” Lanning said.
You rarely hear a head coach trash an opposing head coach before a game, but Lanning’s initial statement seems notable. The outside opinion that people have on Fleck, known nationally as a “gimmicky” guy with his “Row the Boat” mantra, differs from those who know him personally.
With arguably the most financial resources in the entire sport, with the backing of Nike and CEO Phil Knight, a lot of people have opinions about Lanning’s coaching style. Fleck made sure to give him credit as well.
“I think Dan Lanning doesn’t get enough credit for how he connects that football team, how invested they are, how good they are, how well they play collectively together. Especially on the defensive side. We know he’s a really good defensive mind. He’s a great person, he’s a great coach,” Fleck said.
Friday night’s game will be won between the white lines, not on the sidelines that Fleck and Lanning stand on. Minnesota faces quite the uphill battle against an Oregon team that looks like a contender for the College Football Playoff once again.
