Oregon Ducks head coach and former Georgia Bulldogs defensive coordinator Dan Lanning responded to comments made by Kirby Smart earlier this month regarding Oregon’s NIL funds on Thursday.
Speaking at SEC Media Days last week, Smart joked, “Wish I could get some of that NIL money he’s (Nike co-founder Phil Knight) sharing with Dan Lanning.”
Speaking on the “Pat McAfee Show” on ESPN, Lanning sarcastically noted “I think it’s impressive that guys like Kirby Smart have been signing the number one class in the nation without any NIL money.” Lanning did also praise Smart, who he said he considers “a great mentor” and who “changed his career.”
Oregon is long associated with the Nike brand. Phil Knight attended the University of Oregon and has been a major donor to the Ducks’ athletic department for a long time. Former college football coach Rick Neuheisel recently prompted further commentary around the Ducks’ NIL program with his comments on SiriusXM college sports radio that Knight is providing “unlimited” NIL resources in hopes of seeing Oregon win a title.
NIL is perhaps a reason why five-star cornerback DJ Pickett, who many expect to commit to Oregon, dropped Georgia from his list of top schools. However, Kirby Smart knows Georgia can only control so much when it comes to NIL and thinks players deserve NIL.
“I think it’s a mistake to assume that all players lead with that (NIL), or that’s the primary objective,” said Smart. “I think that would be an insult to high school football players and really insult to all people being recruited.”
Georgia has the third ranked class in the nation with 21 commitments, while the Ducks have the fifth ranked class with 16 commitments at this time, per 247Sports.