Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel joined FanSided's Cody Williams on Stacking the Box to discuss everything from his teammate with the best hair to the upcoming NFL Draft to his collegiate career.
As Gabriel and Williams unboxed everything that the veteran quarterback had to share, Duck fans got an inside peak into what life in Eugene was like for the QB after starting his career at UCF, transferring to Oklahoma, and finally joining the Ducks in 2024.
Gabriel, who almost immediately became the starting quarterback at Oregon spoke highly of his understudy, Dante Moore, who is expected to become the Ducks' go-to guy on offense next season.
"Just a guy who's been able to learn," Gabriel said. "Kinda take that step back, I did that in my career and I knew how positive that was for me... I think that step back for him has been extremely beneficial for his career but also that he's gonna be around guys that can help him."
Gabriel spoke highly of his head coach Dan Lanning, from Lanning's ability to coach in an NFL-esque environment, his dedication to the Oregon program, and the future of the Ducks.
"He's young, he gets it, there's not just one way to do it anymore," Gabriel said. "He just understands Oregon in that way. I think that's huge. More importantly, he's a guy that wants to be there... Having something that's consistent... that's important as well."
Gabriel touched on how he isn't a one-off in regards to staying in college for an extra season for two. As the NCAA landscape changes, Gabriel and all of the other college athletes have had to adapt as well, and staying at the collegiate level for longer often benefits players, especially in football.
The former Oregon quarterback had yet to officially declare for the 2025 NFL Draft when he sat down with Williams but Gabriel discussed the importance of pre-Draft steps from team interviews to the Combine to the Draft itself.
"Watch the tape," Gabriel gave as his opening line to a hypothetical NFL general manager or coach. "I think a lot of ways, you see my progression as a player. You can see it physically but you can also see it mentally."
Despite leading Oregon to a perfect 12-0 season and the Ducks' first-ever Big Ten title to cap off their first season in the conference, Gabriel admitted that he has yet to play his best ball and that he is constantly learning but still far from perfection.
Alongside Gabriel, stars like wideout Tez Johnson and Jordan Burch have caught the attention of NFL analysts across the nation. Beyond the obvious stars, Gabriel gave big props to offensive tackle Josh Conerly Jr. and tight end Terrance Ferguson as players who have possibly gone overlooked heading into the Draft.
Gabriel and some of his Oregon teammates will get to play together at least one more time when they take the field at the Reese's Senior Bowl.
The interview was done in partnership with Great Clips – who Gabriel partnered with throughout the 2024 season. Great Clips has been helping players like Dillon get ready for the biggest games of the College Football Playoff. Dillon recently visited their local Great Clips salon to get game day ready with a fresh haircut.
"Visit GreatClips.com/football to claim the $9.99 coupon and visit Great Clips salons across the U.S. through January 31st."
To close out the conversation, Williams kept it simple, who did Gabriel think would win the National Championship at the end of the season? While he didn't give a direct answer, he said he wouldn't be all that surprised if someone from the Big Ten brought home the title.