My favorite part of this question about our Oregon football program? You’re probably asking, “Which one?” While the header image might be a giveaway, I’m going to pick the quarterback that I was DREADFULLY wrong about this offseason: Dante Moore. I had reservations in the spring about whether Dante could get it done as a first-year starter with Oregon, even ...

Oregon Football is Moore the Best in the Country

To paraphrase a song, all I can say is, "More, Moore, Moore... How do you like it?"

Alex, great article and so much to unpack out of it. Looking forward to reading the FORUM posts that should come in today.

The elephant in the room, in your article, is whether Dante Moore heads to the NFL after this season. A great deal will unfold between now and the Natty. Other QB's will find their stride(Manning, Lagway, others?). Will Dante continue to improve? Leaving as a #1 overall pick can be alluring, however getting picked by the right bottom feeder team is just as important.

Dante has a O line that protects and affords him the opportunity to make good decisions. That O line allows the time for the skill position players to run routes, etc. IMHO, the bottom 5 NFL teams have weaker O Lines and very few playmakers. My guess only but Bo Nix will enjoy his rookie contract much more than Dillion Gabriel.

Is Moore experienced enough, at this point, to call audibles? Nix and Gabriel entered the NFL with 60 plus starts. At seasons end, if all goes well, Dante will be in the low twenty's. Big diffetence!

This season many Ducks have stepped up their game to new levels resulting in 5 wins. Long ways to go for sure!

I cant validate this but i read an article in the BIG 10 News that stated 6 true freshmen Ducks started against PSU. 3 on offense and 3 on defense! WOW!

That's difficult, as an ancient gray beard, to wrap my head around. Sure is exciting!

We have the best coach who is never satisfied with where the team is at. We have size, speed and skillsets on both sides of the ball. OBDF we have future NFL talent at every position! How is that possible?

This Duck squad has a manageable but challenging schedule ahead to be in the BIG title game, again. The talent is on the field, they just have to continue their hard work and focus to make it happen!

This fan is up for a tOSU vs Duck title game and a rematch somewhere in the playoffs. Are you?

Go Ducks......

Here is what The Athletic has to say about Moore...

Dante Moore, Oregon

Moore has been even better than anyone outside of the Ducks’ facilities could’ve imagined. He’s completing 75 percent of his passes and has a 14-to-1 TD-to-INT ratio. In the most hostile setting a young QB could face in college, against a talented Penn State defense in a White Out setting, Moore went 29 of 39 for 248 yards, three TDs and no picks. He also scrambled for 35 more yards, which was eye-opening for folks who have heard he wasn’t much of a runner.

“He was smooth as hell, and no panic,” said a defensive coordinator who faced Oregon this season. “He is pretty damn poised. He can throw the hell out of the ball. He wants to look high to low. He does have a big, powerful arm. On film, he throws some unbelievable deep balls. He’s the real deal.”

All the talk inside the Moore camp is that he’s in no rush to leave Oregon for the NFL. They’ve seen how the added seasoning benefitted Jayden Daniels, who flourished as a rookie last year. Moore won’t turn 21 until a month after the 2026 draft.

But the NFL scouting director thinks that, because the 2026 QB class isn’t looking as strong as many expected, scouts are going to push to ramp up their evaluations of Moore, just in case there’s a temptation to leave sooner than expected because of a new opportunity.

“I do think he’d benefit from more time,” said the scouting director. “We’ll see how he progresses throughout the rest of this year. Some plays, he saw the field real well. Some plays, he didn’t. He’s a smooth athlete with good arm talent. He runs well enough to extend plays, and there is something to him. He’s an awesome kid. Didn’t feel like he was full of himself. He fit with his teammates. I was encouraged by what I saw from him. I still want to see a lot more from him this year, but he’s a guy who will be at the top of the conversation with our scouts.”

If he and Oregon have the year we hope--he'll be gone.

57 minutes ago, HappyToBeADuck said:

I cant validate this but i read an article in the BIG 10 News that stated 6 true freshmen Ducks started against PSU. 3 on offense and 3 on defense! WOW!

I am going to disagree with the BIG 10 News...we started one true freshman on defense, (Brandon Finney) and two redshirt freshmen in Iffy at corner, and Aaron Flowers at safety. On offense, we had one true freshman in Dak Moore, and that is it officially, although I would count Hill and Davison as joint starters now. (But Whittington started...)

So, that is two true freshmen, and two RS freshmen. Still...pretty darn good considering the recruiting done in recent years, and what has been brought from the portal.

Dak Moore

Great article Alex, thanks for sharing!

If Dante is not the best QB in college football, it is hard to say who is better.

He is steady and level-headed, he has a very powerful and accurate arm with the ability to put incredible ‘touch’ on his throws,

All that in one package, then throw in a big fast and talented O-line to protect him, speed, size and depth in the RB room, and uber-talented pass catchers!

On top of that we have a top 10 Defense with an incredible amount of experience, depth and youth! Methinks it is going to be a fun season for OBD!

Tough to anoint anyone as the best in the country at their position after 5 games. Dante has a very talented team surrounding him, and certainly possesses the talent to become the “best.”

The Penn State game puts him into the National Spotlight, and Heismann tropy discussion. In the end, it will be all about winning games, as a team, that will determine his rise in the college ranks.

Exciting times for OBD.