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Dan Lanning heaps praise on Jordan James after huge day vs. Ohio State

Derek Peterson

By Derek Peterson

Published:

Dan Lanning said Jordan James approached him before Saturday’s game against No. 2 Ohio State.

“Coach, I got you,” James told him.

Then James went out and ran for 115 yards and a touchdown in Oregon’s 32-31 win over the Buckeyes. He had a 16-yard run in the fourth quarter and then a 9-yard gain on third-and-6 to help extend Oregon’s eventual game-winning field goal drive.

“Jordan, man, he runs like he’s pissed off all the time. We see it every day in practice,” Lanning said after the game. “He took advantage of those opportunities he got today. He’d be the first to tell you the schematic advantages that Coach Stein and the offensive staff created, the blocking that Coach Terry’s crew did… Jordan was a beast tonight. Really proud of him.”

The 100-yard outing was James’s third straight for the Ducks and his fourth in 6 games this season. James has touchdown runs in 4 consecutive games and is up to 667 yards on the season. He’s averaging 6.0 yards per carry and has been a massive beneficiary of the offensive line change the Ducks made earlier this year.

James worked as a complementary back to Bucky Irving last year. With Irving off to the NFL, he’s been the leading man in the backfield and has looked better each week.

He also had a massive blitz pickup that kept Dillon Gabriel clean.

You need all hands on deck to win massive games like Saturday’s. While James didn’t find the endzone after the first quarter ended, he still had a major impact on the game.

Derek Peterson

Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.