Oregon is set to part ways with offensive coordinator Drew Mehringer, CBS Sports shared on Sunday.
The news comes one day after the Ducks were held scoreless in the second half of a 21-10 loss to Illinois.
Mehringer was promoted to offensive coordinator in January, nine months ago, after Will Stein left to become the head coach at Kentucky.
Dan Lanning opened the door to a change after the game. Asked directly whether he would consider changing offensive coordinators, Lanning didn't rule it out. "I think all things are on the table," Lanning said, adding that his team is not currently the best version of itself.
Oregon jumped out to a 10-0 lead on Illinois, then never scored again. The Illini, who were without starting quarterback Katin Houser and started freshman Michael Clayton II, controlled possession for 18:36 in the second half. The Ducks converted only four of 15 third-down attempts.
The loss dropped Oregon to 4-3. The Ducks opened the season ranked #2, then lost 39-31 at Oklahoma State on September 12 while managing just 281 total yards. They bounced back with 84 points against Portland State and 41 in a road win over USC, but Dante Moore suffered a concussion in the September 26 win over USC and has now missed three straight games.
Against UCLA on October 10, Oregon totaled 272 yards, converted one of 12 third downs and committed seven turnovers in a 17-15 loss. The Ducks then got past Nebraska 17-14 before scoring 10 against Illinois, putting them at three straight games with 17 points or fewer. Leading receiver Evan Stewart also missed the Illinois game, and Dylan Raiola finished 27-of-41 for 246 yards.
Earlier this month, we shared Lanning's comments after the UCLA loss, when he confirmed changes to staff responsibilities but refused to say what they were. "Our whole staff wears it," he said at the time.
Mehringer, a Rice graduate, came up as a graduate assistant at Ohio State and then worked as co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at James Madison in 2014 and receivers coach and recruiting coordinator at Houston in 2015. He was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Rutgers in 2016, where at 28 he was the youngest play caller in the Power Five. He then spent 2017 through 2019 at Texas as passing game coordinator, earning Rivals' National Recruiter of the Year honors in 2019. Texas let him go after that season, and he worked as co-offensive coordinator at FAU in 2020 and recruiting coordinator and quarterbacks coach at New Mexico in 2021.
Lanning hired him as tight ends coach in January 2022, and he later added co-offensive coordinator duties. Oregon averaged 36.9 points per game in 2025, a season that included a 23-0 Orange Bowl win over Texas Tech before a 56-22 loss to Indiana in the Peach Bowl.
Lanning had often gone outside the program for hires before promoting Mehringer and Chris Hampton from within this past offseason. At the time, Lanning noted that Mehringer had been with the staff since the start of his tenure in Eugene. That history is what made Saturday's answer stand out. Lanning has spent all season absorbing blame for the offense publicly, and a head coach doesn't make this call on a guy he's worked beside for five years unless he's convinced it has to happen.
Mehringer has been through this business before. He landed on his feet after Texas, and he'll land on his feet again.
The CBS Sports report did not name who will take over play-calling. Northwestern visits Autzen Stadium on October 31, followed by a trip to Ohio State on November 7.
Stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.