Ducks counter coordinator losses with record recruiting haul

How does a team respond to the loss of two key coaches in successive days? 

For Dan Lanning and the Oregon Ducks, a record-breaking recruiting class will serve as a decent start.

The Ducks announced a 21-player 2026 signing class on Wednesday’s national early signing day, giving the Ducks, as of Wednesday night, the consensus No. 2 class in the country behind No. 1 USC.

That would top Oregon’s previous-best finish of No. 3 in last year’s recruiting cycle — and comes on the heels of Oregon losing offensive coordinator Will Stein and the expected departure of defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi. 

“The conversations never changed here — every player that’s signed here, they always sit down in my office, and I always share the truth about my vision for their future, the truth of what it looks like for me here in the future and the future of our coaches here,” Lanning said. “I’ve never been shy about the fact that I’ve been very adamant about the fact that my goal is to help people reach their dreams and their goals.” 

There’s proof of concept there with the coaches — three of the four coordinators Lanning has hired in his four years have now moved on to head coaching roles — and, with this 2025 team, there’s proof there with the players. Oregon’s 11-1 season was largely built on the backs of in-house players who developed through the system, such as Teitum Tuioti and Iapani Laloulu, or play-now freshmen like Dakorien Moore and Brandon Finney Jr. 

“If you have an ability to make an impact here early, you can. That’s really about you and how you progress as you get here,” Lanning said. “Everybody’s process is going to be a little bit different, but I think certainly some people say that and some people show that, and I think we’re a team that could show that here.” 

Looking at this class, the Ducks certainly have some promising future contributors. 

There’s the size and athleticism of incoming offensive linemen such as Immanuel Ihenacho (6-foot-7, 345 pounds, No. 25 player nationally) and Tommy Tofi (6-6, 330, No. 43 player nationally).

There’s a havoc creator in edge rusher Anthony “Tank” Jones (6-4, 240, No. 19 nationally), the top-rated player in Oregon’s class. 

There’s talent at the skill positions — Oregon added running back Tradarian Ball, a top-100 player out of Texas, Messiah Hampton, the No. 1 receiver in New York, and receiver Gatlin Bair, the No. 43 player in the country in the 2024 class who spent the last two years serving a church mission. 

They even added a player with talent and notoriety — 5-star safety Jett Washington is 6-5, 205, the No. 22 player in the country and the nephew of the late Kobe Bryant. 

In total, Oregon’s haul covered 13 states, eight different positions and, once again, had Lanning smiling during his annual December press conference. 

Yes, it was a week that featured a couple of losses for his staff. But it’s still his staff. 

“Players come here for a reason,” Lanning said. “There’s a lot of reasons that go into that, but I think we have a really complete program…Every player that we’re able to sign is truly a complete staff effort.” 

And the work is far from done: As of Wednesday night, 5-star Ohio State WR commit Chris Henry Jr. had yet to sign with the Buckeyes following the departure of OSU offensive coordinator Brian Hartline to become South Florida’s head coach. 

Coordinating the future

The Ducks will continue to work on adding Henry — then others once the transfer portal opens on Jan. 2. 

But there’s also a football game to prepare for. And while the Ducks are going to be on the search for their new coordinators, Lanning on Wednesday confirmed that Stein and Lupoi are expected to coach their respective units until the end of the playoff run. 

“Certainly the plan is for those guys to be able to help us as we go through and chase what we want to finish this season,” Lanning said. 

As for what he’s looking for in his next coordinators, the coach said schematics are less important than fit. 

“To me, it’s about the ability to be humble, the ability to work with others and share a creative space,” Lanning said. “To realize it’s not just yours, it’s others’, right? A lot of people are involved in having success on offense and defense, and we’ve been really fortunate to have coaches who recognize that it’s not their call, that it’s the player. That’s really the secret: It’s having great players and having guys that can execute at a high level. Accountability is necessary, and then being humble enough to realize that when you make mistakes, you don’t make the same mistake again.”