The off-field noise around Oregon football kept growing Monday, and Dan Lanning made it clear he wasn’t interested in feeding it.
Lanning opened his weekly press conference by addressing what he called an incident that “didn't match” the program’s standard, saying the situation would be handled inside the building. He did not name Evan Stewart, but his comments came after Springfield Police announced Stewart had been arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of intoxicants (DUII).
“Just to start things off first obviously there was an incident this weekend that didn't match our standard here in our program,” Lanning said. “There will be appropriate action taken. Still gathering some details with what the situation looks like, but that'll be handled internally.”
He shut the door quickly on follow-up questions.
“I'm not going to respond to any other questions about that,” he added. “Going to handle that with our guys.
There's an expectation of what you have to, how you have to act, and how you need to perform in our program and (it) kind of overshadows the success that we had on Saturday, which is disappointing. But that will be handled by us internally, and it's not something I'm going to speak on publicly.”
Police said an officer stopped Stewart at approximately 5 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 18, on Highway 126 near Mohawk Boulevard. According to the department’s media release, Stewart was arrested after the investigation and taken to Springfield Municipal Jail.
The storm around the Ducks didn’t stop there. Online rumors also linked Oregon players to street racing, but Springfield Police said Stewart was not involved in that matter. Officers had ended a separate vehicle pursuit earlier Sunday morning, and that investigation remained active.
When asked about “a separate speeding incident,” Lanning tied it back to the broader issue he had already referenced.
“No, I'm saying there's an incident that we're taking appropriate action on, and I'm not going to have any further comment on that,” he said.
Stewart’s arrest landed at a bad time for a Ducks offense already dealing with injuries. Oregon quarterback Dante Moore missed his second straight game with a concussion against Nebraska, and receivers Jeremiah McClellan and Stewart were both out as well. Stewart had been listed as questionable, then doubtful, and finally out before missing the 17-14 comeback win over the Cornhuskers.
Even with the missed time, Stewart remains Oregon’s top receiver through five games with 352 yards and four touchdowns.
This is also not the first DUII-related incident tied to the Oregon program in 2026. Running backs coach and assistant head coach Ra’Shaad Samples was charged with DUII and reckless driving after an April incident in which he allegedly backed his truck into a parked car, according to The Oregonian/OregonLive. Lanning later addressed that matter during fall camp and said the team was handling it internally.
On Monday, he declined to expand on what message he’d give the community after two reported DUII-related incidents involving program members in seven months.
“Yeah, man, I'm not I'm not discussing that any further,” Lanning said. “Like I mentioned already, to think that there isn't things that happen in our program to prevent it would be wrong, right?
There are, but that doesn't mean that bad things don't happen. But I'm not answering any questions into that.”
The Ducks are now turning to a Big Ten road game against Illinois, their third trip away from home in 2026. Oregon is coming off the win over Nebraska and still has two losses, so the Illinois game looms as another important test in the playoff picture.
The first availability report is set to come out at 5 p.m. PT on Wednesday, and Moore’s status, along with the health of other key playmakers, remains uncertain.
Lanning also used Monday’s session to talk through the Illinois matchup and the quarterback situation, but the off-field issue dominated the day.
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