The scene on New Year’s Day in the post-game media room at the Orange Bowl was a night and day difference from this time last year.
One year ago today, Oregon head coach Dan Lanning and his team were soaking their sorrows in the embarrassing spotlight of defeat to the eventual national champion, the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Thursday afternoon, it was all smiles for Lanning, his coaching staff, and his team as they shut out the No. 4 seed Red Raiders 23-0 in Miami.
“We just felt like in this moment it was going to be about chipping away, and eventually it was going to break,” explained Lanning in his post-game comments.
“It kind of broke open with us creating some extra opportunities there with takeaways. Opportunities in special teams – I thought our special teams played really, really well.
( POSTGAME ) DAN LANNING DISCUSSES 23-0 WIN OVER THE RED RAIDERS
( GAME HIGHLIGHTS ) OREGON 23, TEXAS TECH 0