While Oregon adjusts to life without Dillon Gabriel, Dan Lanning is banking on Dante Moore to lead the way. The quarterback torch at Oregon has been passed from a proven star who racked up 3857 yards, 30 touchdowns, and 6 interceptions. He has observed, learned, and grown from Gabriel’s stormy run, but he didn’t get the chance to showcase what he had learned in his first year. Now, the question is: can he successfully translate these lessons to the scoreboard? Well, the latest B1G rankings don’t support the hype.
When it comes to pure athleticism and raw talent, Moore checks all the boxes. As a former 5-star recruit with limited playing experience, there have been questions about him filling in Gabriel’s legacy. In his single year at UCLA, Moore racked up 1610 yards, 11 touchdowns, and nine interceptions. As the projected starter at Oregon, the scale is high for Moore in Will Stein’s offense. However, the spring brought a glimpse of what we could expect. And studying on that ground, the Oregon insider reports from DucksWire, kept Moore at No.4 in the best Big 10 starting quarterback lists. They reserved the top spots, No.3, No. 2, and No.1 for Dylan Raiola, Nico Iamaleava, and Drew Allar, respectively.
Despite off-field controversy, Iamaleava’s numbers at Tennessee were unmatched. His incredible 2,616 yards, 19 touchdowns, and 5 interceptions speak volumes of his caliber under center. Now, under a new downgraded offense at UCLA, it will be a challenge for Nico Iamaleava to stay firm on his standard or even do better, but as long as it’s his last season, No.2 makes the most sense.
For Drew Allar as well, the top spot does its job. I mean, look at his stellar three-year stats in Penn State. Not only did he just get the numbers, but the battle-tested experience, making him the most eligible to topple all the competitors. He could have gone to the pro, but he chose to return for one last shot, to polish his skills. There is nothing shaky or uncertain about his talent.
But Moore has a tedious job to match up the legacy he succeeded at Oregon. Tough? Sure. But Dan Lanning keeps brewing hope.
Dan Lanning holds on tight to his Dante Moore hope
”They’re pretty hyped on the quarterback [Dante Moore], who they’ve had in the system for a season already, which is a huge advantage,” Dan Lanning updated on the air of the locker room around Moore’s takeover. “This isn’t modifying your book for a guy you get out of the portal; it’s a talented, developed player who already knows your system. I think that will show early in this season.”
The Ducks, early in September, can have some golden opportunities for Moore to shine bright as the schedule has some mercy on Oregon will debut against Montana State, followed by games against Oklahoma State, Oregon State, and Northwestern.
After that, they will lace up the shoes for perhaps the biggest challenge of the season on September 27, when the Ducks check into Happy Valley to face the Penn State Nittany Lions. Moore’s inexperience can really get the Ducks into trouble. But if you tweak the perspective, his chill-out freshman year allowed him to see and understand a lot of things that would otherwise be unexplored, unseen. So, that can be a brownie point as well.
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