Oregon Ducks quarterback Dante Moore will be available to start today’s game against in-state rivals Oregon State at Autzen Stadium. After coach Dan Lanning confirmed that Moore will be the starting quarterback for the Week 1 game, the 20-year-old didn’t leave him any room to think otherwise than starting him against Oregon State.
Given there have been no reports of any injury concerns, Moore should start his second game of the season.
Moore has taken over the program’s starting quarterback duties, succeeding Dillon Gabriel, who was picked in the third round by the Cleveland Browns in this year’s NFL draft.
Gabriel led Oregon to an unbeaten regular season last year; thus, Moore has a lot to prove replacing such a star. He won the 2025 QB1 job over Austin Novosad, Luke Moga, and others. His experience with the UCLA Bruins and playing backup to Gabriel last season played a big role in the decision-making.
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In the dominant 59-13 win against Montana State, Moore completed 18 of 23 passes for 213 yards and three touchdowns, also adding 18 rushing yards. After the game, Moore earned praise from Lanning for his decision-making and passing skills, highlighting a few plays as he analyzed the quarterback’s Oregon debut.
“There were several. There were several plays (that showed his progress),” Lanning said via On3. “The big catch by [Jay Harris] there over the middle was an opportunity for him to redirect the protection and slide it away from a load-front, which is pretty unique.”
“He did a great job there and was able to hit an angle route there to [Harris], but there were a lot of moments where the first read wasn’t there and you see him going through the progression and getting to his second read,” he added. “He took care of the ball, and there were very few ball-in-jeopardy-type plays. I thought he made good decisions and looked very poised back there.”
Following his Week 1 performance, Moore debuted at No. 20 in On3’s updated Heisman Trophy rankings.
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