Ducks Focus on Depth, Execution and Leadership in Spirited First Fall Camp Practice

Oregon continued their road to a Big Ten title and the college football playoff with the first practice of fall camp, yesterday afternoon on the team's outdoor practice fields.

Dan Lanning met the media after the workout and he said, "I thought it was a really good first day for our guys. I think every coach in the nation knows you're going to have energy and enthusiasm on day one; I haven't been around a team that didn't have that. What I was looking for from our team was execution. We've had a lot of spring practices, a lot of walk throughs and a lot of prep time to get it right, and I thought our guys got it right today."

New rules passed by the NCAA in June lifted a limit on how many assistant coaches can be available to give instruction, and Lanning saw an immediate benefit to that change on day one.

Lanning said, "We did more two-spot work today than we've ever done in a first practice for us in the fall. What's that mean? Instead of 44 guys getting a rep because the ones and twos are going, we've got 88 guys getting a rep. That's really beneficial for us."

"We've got 130 players, and before we were doing that with 10 coaches, some GAs and myself. So now, having more guys being able to be hands-on is really beneficial to us and our development."

The coach said he was pleased with the effort but stressed that the team still has to get in football shape with 30 days to until they host Idaho in the season opener. "You know, it got a little quieter towards the end of practice where guys were getting gassed have to continue to work on getting in football shape. But outside of that I was really pleased with the guys," the third-year head coach said.

Going forward, execution is key. Asked about his checklist for the opening of fall camp, Lanning said, "I think we're going to bring great effort and enthusiasm. Now we gotta go in here and coach the technique that we saw, but I wanted to make sure we're not walking out here and running 15 defenses that we can't run that we bust every time or 15 plays on offense that don't work. Because we're not running the right route. We're not blocking the proper guy, and I didn't see that today. I saw guys executed at a high level, which is the expectation."

Teams all over the country opened fall camp today (the rule is one month before the first game) and every head coach that faces the media will express guarded optimism and the desire to execute and get better. At Oregon, expectations are as inflated as the Duck they planted in the White River at Big Ten Media Day.

It's one thing to make a splash, but another to make a big enough one to keep everyone else wet from now until December.