Why Jahlil Florence’s commitment is such a massive win for Dan Lanning and the Ducks

Oregon’s recruiting rivalry against USC is just getting started, but Dan Lanning picked up the first major victory with the commitment of 4-star CB Jahlil Florence.

In the moments after winning the national championship game with the Georgia Bulldogs earlier this year, new Oregon Ducks head coach Dan Lanning made a choice. Rather than put off his future duties and stay completely in the moment, he put on his Ducks’ coaching cap and made a call.

It was 4-star cornerback Jahlil Florence who picked up.

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At that moment, Lanning let it be known that Florence was the biggest prospect for Oregon to target over the coming month leading up to National Signing Day. He took the time to show Florence, the No. 11 CB in the 2022 class, that he was a priority to Lanning and offered a look at the success around him. That dedication to Florence continued later in the month when Oregon coaches showed up at his door at 12:01 AM as soon as the recruiting period opened up. Florence repaid the favor by taking a last-minute visit to Eugene this past weekend for a visit, the final one before making his decision.

It all led to this moment — Jahlil Florence announcing his commitment to the Ducks, choosing Oregon over the USC Trojans. On the surface, it looks like an elite prospect choosing to bet on the Dan Lanning experiment and show trust in what the Oregon coaches are building in Eugene. If you wish to look, though, you can find more.

This is Dan Lanning winning. This is him setting his sights on a recruit and not giving up until they agreed to join his team. This is him going up against Lincoln Riley, one of the biggest recruiting powers in the nation, and coming out on top. It may not mean that Oregon will win every head-to-head recruiting battle with the Trojans over the coming years, but it’s certainly a nice victory to have early in the rivalry.

With the commitment of Florence, Lanning showed that he is absolutely capable of playing with the big boys, and the talent pipeline to Eugene didn’t dry up when Mario Cristobal left for Miami.

The Lanning era is off to a great start in Oregon.

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