You’ve seen the video. It’s hard to miss if you spend even five minutes on college football Twitter (or X, whatever we're calling it this week). Oregon head coach Dan Lanning, a guy known for his high-octane energy and "relentless" mantra, standing poolside. He’s with a high-school kid, they shout a few words, and then—splash.
The dan lanning pool jump became an instant meme.
It was May 10, 2025. The recruit was Richard Wesley, a five-star edge rusher out of Sierra Canyon in California. This wasn't just some casual dip in the water; it was a carefully choreographed commitment video designed to break the internet. And it did. But for all the wrong reasons just a few weeks later.
The Splash Heard 'Round Eugene
The setup was classic modern recruiting. You had Lanning, who has basically turned Oregon into the "cool" capital of the Big Ten, trying to prove he’s the ultimate "players' coach." In the clip, Wesley says, "A lot of schools showed me a lot of love. But one school showed me the most love."
Then Lanning appears.
"You ready coach?" Wesley asks.
"Let's get it!" Lanning yells back.
They both leap. Lanning actually went for a full-on cannonball, shirt and all. They surfaced, threw the "O" hand sign, and Ducks fans everywhere thought they had just secured the cornerstone of their 2026 defense. It felt like a new era of "Oregon energy."
👉 See also: Why the 2025 NFL Draft Class is a Total Headache for Scouts
Honestly, it was kind of fun. At first.
People forget that Lanning has always been a bit of a psychologist when it comes to motivation. He’s the same guy who weaponized Wisconsin’s "Jump Around" tradition by blasting it at practice until his players were sick of it, just so they’d be unfazed at Camp Randall. He’s a coach who believes in "coaching celebration." He told his team in a behind-the-scenes video that when you have success, it should look a certain way.
The pool jump was supposed to be that look. It was the visual representation of a "massive recruiting coup" during Mother’s Day weekend.
Why the Internet Turned on the Jump
Here is where the story gets messy.
Exactly 17 days after the video went live, Richard Wesley decommitted.
Imagine jumping into a pool fully clothed for a guy who stays committed to your program for less than three weeks. The internet, as it usually does, was brutal. By May 27, 2025, the "dan lanning pool jump" wasn't a symbol of Oregon’s dominance anymore; it was the ultimate "cringe" moment of the recruiting cycle.
Pat McAfee mocked it on his show. Rival fans from USC and Washington flooded the comments with "did he jump out of the pool yet?" jokes. It became a cautionary tale about the "look at me" era of recruiting.
✨ Don't miss: Liverpool FC Chelsea FC: Why This Grudge Match Still Hits Different
But if we’re being real, this says more about the current state of NIL and college football than it does about Lanning’s coaching style. Wesley’s father, Jonathan, eventually told media outlets that his son was still "90% with the Ducks" but needed to explore other options—code for checking out better NIL packages. Wesley eventually committed to the Texas Longhorns in late June 2025.
That’s when the video really resurfaced. Watching Lanning do a cannonball for a kid who ended up in Austin? That’s a tough pill to swallow for the Duck faithful.
The Reality of "Cringe" Recruiting
We have to ask: Was it actually a mistake?
Most coaches would tell you they’d jump off a bridge (into a safety net, maybe) if it meant landing a five-star. Lanning is 39 years old. He’s young. He’s trying to bridge the gap between the stoic, old-school coaching vibe and the new, TikTok-driven reality of 17-year-old athletes.
Sometimes you win. Sometimes you end up soaked in a rooftop pool for nothing.
The dan lanning pool jump happened during a weird stretch for Oregon. Along with Wesley, the Ducks saw several other 2026 commits like Kodi Greene and Tomuhini Topui back off their pledges. It felt like the "splashes" weren't sticking.
However, if you look at Lanning's track record, he doesn't stay down. By July 4th weekend in 2025, he was back on social media "flexing" after landing other blue-chip prospects, including Jett Washington (Kobe Bryant’s nephew). He didn't stop being himself just because one video aged poorly.
🔗 Read more: NFL Football Teams in Order: Why Most Fans Get the Hierarchy Wrong
Lessons for the Modern Fan
If you're following this stuff, you've gotta realize that a commitment video is basically a movie trailer. It doesn't mean the movie is actually coming out.
- Verbal commitments are barely "verbal" anymore. They are placeholders.
- Coaches are performers. Lanning is a great coach, but in May, he’s a salesman.
- NIL changes everything. A pool jump is cool, but a six-figure or seven-figure collective deal is cooler.
The "cringe" factor is real, sure. But in a world where you're competing with Kirby Smart and Steve Sarkisian, you can't afford to be boring. Lanning chose to be the guy who jumps in the pool.
Moving Past the Meme
So, what really happened with the dan lanning pool jump?
It wasn't a "failed" recruitment in the traditional sense. It was a high-risk, high-reward marketing play that got "lockered" by the reality of the transfer portal and NIL era.
If you're an Oregon fan, you probably don't love seeing your coach mocked on College GameDay. But you probably love the fact that he's willing to do whatever it takes to get elite talent on campus. Even if it means getting his shoes wet.
Lanning's philosophy remains the same: "When you hear that song, I want the temperature of the room to change." Whether it's "Jump Around" in Wisconsin or a splash in Eugene, he’s trying to control the energy.
How to track the fallout of these viral moments:
- Watch the Early National Signing Day: This is the only date that actually matters. Until the ink is dry, the pool jump is just a video.
- Follow the "Ducks vs. Them" series: Oregon’s media team is elite. They usually show the context behind these moments a few months later, providing a more nuanced look at Lanning’s "celebration" philosophy.
- Check the 2026 Rankings: Despite the Wesley decommitment, Lanning has kept Oregon in the top 10 of most recruiting ranks. The "cringe" hasn't actually hurt the program's bottom line.
Next time you see a coach doing something slightly embarrassing for a recruit, just remember: it's a business. And sometimes, business requires a cannonball.
To stay updated on Oregon's latest recruiting moves, you should follow the team's official social feeds during big visit weekends, as that's when Lanning's next "viral" tactic is likely to drop.