How Oregon's Coaching Staff Is Only Getting Better

EUGENE, OREGON – NOVEMBER 24: Head coach Dan Lanning of the Oregon Ducks stands on the field before their game against the Oregon State Beavers at Autzen Stadium on November 24, 2023 in Eugene, Oregon. (Photo by Tom Hauck/Getty Images)

By 750 THE GAME STAFF

There was a ton of action in the coaching carousel this offseason in college football. Head coaches, coordinators, position coaches, and athletic directors were changing schools.

But what schools actually improved their staffs?

The best man to ask about that is the College Football Matrix Dave Bartoo. Bartoo joined the Bald Faced Truth with John Canzano and talked about some of the schools on the West Coast and how most of these schools didn’t improve.

“I think Arizona took a step back,” Bartoo said on 750 The Game. “I don’t think Arizona is better on the numbers. I know Washington is absolutely not better. Washington was a top five staff walking in to the season last year. And they lost all of those guys. So that was not replaceable.”

USC’s defense was historically bad a season ago. There had to be a change and there was. But Bartoo is not sold on the Trojans on the defensive side.

“A lot of people pointing at USC,” Bartoo said. “You know something? They replaced (Alex) Grinch, but they replaced him with a guy who has called plays for 12 games. It could be great, but on paper it’s not that great.”

We saw the results that Jonathan Smith had at Oregon State. Bartoo says that Oregon State had to replace one of the best staffs in the nation.

“We know that Oregon State took a big fall down. They had one of the best, top 25, staffs in the country. It’s now at Michigan State.

“I think mostly overall on the West Coast you had a lot of downgrades in overall staffing ability across the board.”

There was one school who Bartoo says improved. The Oregon Ducks kept their head coach and both coordinators. Bartoo says the Ducks coaching staff is elite and only getting better.

“Probably the only one on the West Coast to improve is Oregon. They have good offense. They have good defense. They kept both coordinators. (Tosh) Lupoi’s grade went up. (Will) Stein’s grade went up. They kept those guys. They did have a little bit of turnover, but not much overall. Dan’s (Lanning) number improved.”

Listen to the full interview with Dave Bartoo by clicking the podcast below. Catch the Bald Faced Truth with John Canzano weekdays 3-6 p.m. in Portland exclusively on 750 The Game.