If there was any doubt about where the coaching decision of the weekend came from, those doubts were put to rest at Dan Lanning's weekly presser yesterday.
Out in Eugene, taking on Ohio State, Lanning and the Ducks exploited a loophole in the rulebook with 10 seconds left to play and the Buckeyes threatening to get into field goal range in a one-point play out of a timeout.
Coming out of the stoppage, Oregon sent 12 players on the field, blanketing the trips side with the extra body to ensure the throw to the single-receiver, who was bracketed by high-low coverage from the corner and safety.
Ryan Day was seen on the other sideline by cameras screaming about the 12th man, but there was some discussion about whether Oregon meant to do that or not, as the Ducks essentially traded 5 yards for four seconds of time on the clock.
He (somehow) wasn't asked about the penalty in his post-game presser, but yesterday the question popped up in his presser yesterday, and Lanning couldn't help but grin.
After talking about the coverage, and the corner having safety help over the top, Lanning continued, "there was a timeout before that, and we spend an inordinate amount of time on situations, and there are some situations that don't show up very often in college football, but this is one that obviously we have worked on. So you can see the result."
Lanning's may not have come out with a clear and defined 'Yes," but his grin the entire answer tells the whole story.
Dan Lanning's full answer below on if the 12 men on the field penalty vs. Ohio State was intentional.
— Brenna Greene (@BrennaGreene_) October 15, 2024
To sum it up, it sure seems the answer is, "Yes." pic.twitter.com/BtmoqxTEIn