Penn State athletic director Pat Kraft had a lot to say about Oregon while meeting with a group of Nittany Lions players last month. Dan Lanning is saying less in response.
Audio leaked last week of Kraft’s meeting with a group of football players, during which he called Oregon “frauds” that “won’t win a national championship” and criticized the area around UO saying “ain’t (expletive) going on, it’s a bunch of (expletive) weirdos.”
Lanning said he had “no response” when asked about Kraft’s comments during an appearance on the Zach Gelb Show on Wednesday.
“Pat’s trying to do the best job that he can for Penn State,” Lanning said. “But yeah, I heard it. It was good.”
Oregon does not play Penn State again in the regular season until 2027. As for whether Kraft’s comments could be referenced before the next meeting, “we’ll see,” Lanning said.
Kraft said he was “embarrassed” when asked about his remarks during Penn State’s introductory press conference for coach Matt Campbell on Tuesday.
“I apologize to anyone that I may have offended with that video that leaked,” Kraft said. “Personally, it’s been challenging for me, but I am very passionate about Penn State. It was nine or 10 football players that asked if I wanted to come and sit down, and we had an open and honest discussion.
“But I fell short of the standard that I should represent for all those people, all my staff … all 833 athletes that I represent. I can’t apologize enough for those who I may have offended and I gotta get better. Every one of my athletes know, they can call me at any point and time, and I have open and honest discussions whenever they want. We’re moving on, we handle it in the family and I’m proud of our guys.”
No. 12 James Madison (12-1) at No. 5 Oregon (11-1)
When: Saturday, Dec. 20Time: 4:30 p.m. PTWhere: Autzen StadiumTV: TNT/HBO Max