Former Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning will be facing his old team on Saturday when his Oregon Ducks take on the Bulldogs from Atlanta.
Lanning served as Kirby Smart’s defensive coordinator for three seasons, helping the Dawgs win a national title behind Lanning’s sensational 2021 unit.
So he’s obviously familiar with the Dawgs, and on Monday he had a lot of praise for UGA signal-caller Stetson Bennett.
“Stetson exudes confidence, right, he’s a really confident player,” Lanning said in his press conference on Monday night. “He knows what he knows, he’s very intelligent. There’s not a throw he doesn’t feel like he can’t make and obviously he’s elusive, you know when he’s in the pocket and the way he’s able to move and extend plays. So yeah, I’ve got a lot of respect for Stetson, because he got it the long hard way, right? Nothing was handed to him. You know, this guy went and earned it. He earned the respect of his teammates and his coaching staff.”
Lanning’s words differ from what we’ve been hearing all offseason from the national media. PFF recently ranked Bennett No. 34 among quarterbacks in the nation and No. 10 in the SEC for the 2022 season. Not a terribly fitting placement for a passer who did something no other quarterback in America was able to last season. Brad Crawford of 247Sports also released his SEC quarterback rankings in which Bennett checked in at No. 8.
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