Dante Moore has two new significant edges opponents won't see coming. Neither is on his 2023 film or the scouting report, but both should help as the new chief operating officer of the Oregon offense.
One, running back Makhi Hughes is a superb pass blocker. He graded out last year as one of the highest in college football after TreVeyon Henderson of the Buckeyes.
Coupled with an offensive line that excels at pass blocking, that gives a young starting quarterback an extra measure of security as he goes through his progressions.
In February Hythloday of Addicted to Quack wrote after reviewing Hughes' film at Tulane, "Hughes shows awareness, power, and leverage to defeat the entire variety of pass rushers, from a sneaky cat blitz to a crashing backer and even linemen who outweigh him by a hundred pounds."
Having a back like that checking his blind side is a huge extra edge for Moore in his early weeks as a full-time rehabilitated starter, and it helps also that Hughes excels as an outlet receiver with reliable hands and an ability to get the most of of an opening in the defense.
The second thing Moore has going for him taking over for the Ducks is that he did specific work to improve his speed in the offseason. At Oregon Media Day he said, "I had a great off-summer. I really got my body right. I actually hit my goal for the summer. Coach [Wilson] Love and Coach Bolt [Kyle Bolton] made sure I got my speed up and hit my goal. I'm really excited. I'm excited to show what I can do with my feet."
In testing Moore hit 21.5 miles per hour on the GPS. That's not Bo Nix/Marcus Mariota territory but it's decent enough speed to take advantage of an occasional break in containment or scramble for a first down. In special situations or left uncovered by a careless backside defender, the Detroit native could motor for some yards-- his long run as a Bruin went for 16.
Though primarily a pocket passer Moore's a decent athlete. In 2023 coming out of Martin Luther King High School he ranked as the No. 4 prospect in the class and the No. 3 quarterback behind Arch Manning and Nico Iamaleava. Austin Novosad, his primary competition for the Ducks' starting job, ranked No. 9.
After practice last Friday offensive coordinator Will Stein told the media, "The biggest growth for him is just to take what the defense gives you."
"If you take what the defense gives you, they'll give you the game every single time. We've won a lot of games here with that mindset at quarterback. That doesn't mean that we don't throw to win or we don't take chances down the field, but being extremely efficient offense is huge, because we stay on the field."
Sometimes the easiest yards are the found in the yawning gap in the pass rush where the receivers have cleared out a lot of green space. With improved foot-speed, Moore has the capability to include that in his arsenal.
An increased ability to buy time or steal an occasional first down with his legs just makes him more of a complete quarterback, better able to take advantage of the defense and seize opportunities. He won two state titles in high school, a leader and a competitor.