NEWYou can now listen to PK Press Club articles!
Oregon head coach Dan Lanning has continued to campaign for the college football season to end on January 1 each year, in an effort to resolve several issues.
Lanning highlighted the challenges of coordinators who accept head coaching jobs being forced to juggle responsibilities, and said he prefers to reduce long layoffs between games. The 39-year-old has been talking about ending the college football season early since the summer.
“Every playoff game should be played every weekend until the season is over,” Lanning said during his press conference Wednesday. “Even if that means we start Week 0 or you eliminate a bye, the season ends Jan. 1, and then the portal opens, and then coaches who need to move on to their next opportunities can move on to their next opportunities.”
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON PK Press Club
Oregon Ducks head coach Dan Lanning watches the fourth quarter against the James Madison Dukes at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Oregon on December 20, 2025. (Craig Strobeck/Imagn Images)
Lanning reiterated throughout his press conference that he believed playing the first round allowed his team to keep the pace. Last season, Oregon was the No. 1 seed and lost in its first College Football Playoff game to Ohio State.
The NFL plays games on Saturdays throughout December, something Lanning disagrees with. He would prefer that Saturdays remain reserved for college football so they can pick up the pace of the College Football Playoff to finish their season by January 1st.
“I have a lot of respect for the NFL, but we are an NFL prep league,” Lanning said. “We do a lot of favors for the NFL. We’re a minor league in many ways, but the NFL doesn’t pay any money to take care of college football.
COACH OF NATIONAL CHAMPION WANTS TRUMP “MORE INVOLVED” IN NIL REGULATIONS: “OUR SPORT IS KILLED”
Oregon head coach Dan Lanning looks at the scoreboard during the first half of the first round of the NCAA College Football Playoff against James Madison, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025, in Eugene, Oregon. (AP Photo/Lydia Ely)
“We dedicated some of our days to the NFL. We said, ‘Oh, you’ll have this day, you’ll have this day, you’ll have this day.’ Saturday should be sacred to college football, and every Saturday through December should belong to college football. »
Oregon’s offensive and defensive coordinators are both trying to fulfill their dual responsibilities. Offensive coordinator Will Stein took the job at Kentucky, while defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi took the job at California.
If Oregon advances beyond the quarterfinals, both coaches will have to navigate the transfer portal, which opens Jan. 2, while also trying to coach the Ducks to a national championship.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE PK Press Club APP
Bundle FOX One and FOX Nation to stream the entire FOX Nation library, plus live FOX News, Sports and Entertainment at our lowest price of the year. Offer ends January 4, 2026. (Fox One; Fox Nation)
“Our national championship game this year is Jan. 19, and that’s really hard to imagine for a coach trying to come to a new program and build a team,” Lanning said.
“It’s hard for players to understand what continuity looks like and where they’re going to be and deal with that with the visits, the portal, everything that’s there. The best way to do that is to speed up the season and make sure those playoff games happen a lot quicker.”
Oregon will face Texas Tech in the Orange Bowl on January 1 at noon ET.
