Oregon fires offensive coordinator Drew Mehringer after a loss to Illinois

Oregon fired offensive coordinator Drew Mehringer on Sunday, a day after the Ducks lost to Illinois. The 21-10 loss on the road to the Illini was the third of the season for Oregon, essentially ending any chance at the College Football Playoff. “Drew has been a valued member of this staff since 2022, and I am appreciative of everything he’s done for Oregon,” Ducks coach Dan Lanning said in a statement released by the athletic department. “He played a tremendous role in what this program has accomplished over the last several seasons. This was a decision I felt was in the best interest of our football program, as I believe a new direction is necessary to move our offense forward. I thank Drew for his efforts and wish him all the best.”Oregon, which was ranked No. 2 in the preseason AP Top 25, is 4-3 overall and 2-2 in Big Ten play. Saturday's result was the Ducks’ first road loss in Big Ten play since they joined the conference in 2024, a string of 10 straight wins. Lanning hinted about a possible move following the loss on Saturday when he was asked about Mehringer, who joined the team in 2022 as the tight ends coach and was promoted to co-offensive coordinator in 2025. “I think all things are on the table for us to make sure that we’re the best version of ourselves, and we’re currently not that. That’s very clear,” Lanning said. Lanning was also asked if he had misread the team's capabilities heading into the season. “I don’t think I ever said we were going to be something other than what we create, right?” he said. “And football is about what you go to do every single day, what you do, your body of work. We don’t have the body of work as a team right now to be anything other than who we are.”Oregon hosts No. 20 Northwestern on Saturday. ___Sign up for Top 25 poll alerts here. Visit the Top 25 here and see AP’s full college football coverage here.