In 2025, when an opposing coach says something bad about Oregon Ducks head coach Dan Lanning and how his program built their roster, bad things tend to happen.
Case in point, Mike Gundy, the Oklahoma State head coach, who told anyone that would listen that the Ducks had the best lines money could buy, only for his team to lose a stunner 69-3 and fall to 1-1.
Heading into Week 3 of the college football season, Northwestern head coach David Braun decided to take things in a decidedly different direction, giving Lanning a compliment for what he's built in Eugene before he two teams lock up in a Big Ten showdown.
“Incredible opportunity this weekend with Oregon coming into town, opening up Big Ten play. Coach Lanning has done an exceptional job. Not only are they very talented, but they are incredibly well coached. There's not a single stone that will go unturned by him and his staff. They're going to be aggressive. They're going to try and apply pressure in a lot of different ways, in all three phases, on top of being extremely talented,” Braun said via The Sporting News.
“They're fundamentally sound, they're physical, play hard, finish plays. Turn on the tape from their first two games, and it doesn't take long to find a profound respect for the quality of football team that they have and the task we have right in front of us this Saturday.”
Now granted, maybe Braun saw what Gundy said and wanted to avoid poking a sleeping giant, knowing all too well what kind of damage it can do when angered. Or maybe Braun is simply impressed with the quality of play Oregon has brought to the Big Ten, giving the conference another big dog College Football Playoffs contender and a higher profile moving forward. For a head coach looking to build a dynasty of his own in Illinois, that influence can be powerful.
