How Dante Moore stacks up with recent Duck star quarterbacks

The Oregon Ducks have been blessed with quarterback talent. Further back, there were names like Joey Harrington, Dennis Dixon, and Marcus Mariota. In recent years, names like Justin Herbert, Bo Nix, and Dillon Gabriel have come to mind. Now, you can add Dante Moore to the mix of talented Duck QBs. But how does he stack up to some of Oregon's legendary QBs?

That's what we are looking to find out. Let's take a look at the first seven starts in an Oregon uniform for Mariota, Herbert, Nix, and Gabriel to compare to Moore's first seven for the Ducks. Now, obviously, they were all in different positions when they started. Some were older or started elsewhere before transferring to Oregon. Some played harder competition with less around them. But this is about what these QBs did for the Ducks in their first seven starts, to see where Dante Moore fits and to map his potential development as a Duck.

Dante Moore has thrown for 1,686 yards, 19 touchdowns, and four interceptions this season. He has completed 72.3 percent of his passes. On the ground, Moore has rushed for 144 yards on 36 carries. The Ducks are currently standing at 6-1. For any QB, this is a really great start. Moore has been calm and collected this season, demonstrating considerable maturity.

Marcus Mariota vs. Dante Moore

Marcus Mariota is arguably the greatest Duck of all time. The former Heisman winner is currently in the NFL backing up Jayden Daniels on the Washington Commanders. Let's take a look at how he kicked off his Oregon career.

Mariota first started for the Ducks in 2012. He threw for 1,347 yards, 16 TDs, and 5 INTs with a 68.3 percent completion rate. So far, Moore may have a slight edge. But don't forget what made Mariota so electric. The dual-threat Duck ran for 346 yards and 2 TDs himself on 53 attempts. Mariota also had a receiving touchdown, putting him at 19 total for those seven games.

Mariota's Ducks were 7-0. Now with the full picture, Moore and Mariota's statistics are not too far off from each other. Mariota edges out Moore in most passing stats, but Mariota was the far better runner. What is more impressive is how much less experienced Mariota was compared to Moore, and the numbers he was able to put up despite his inexperience.

Justin Herbert vs. Dante Moore

Justin Herbert is one of the most loved Ducks of all time. He was the last Duck to play his whole collegiate career with Oregon, and that is definitely a factor in him being a fan favorite. Herbert's first start came in Week 3 of 2016 against the bitter rival Washington Huskies. In his first seven starts, Herbo threw for 1,866 yards, 19 TDs, and 4 INTs with a 63.6 percent completion rate.

As a freshman, Herbert attempted 57 rushes with 157 yards and a touchdown. During this stretch, the Ducks had a record of 2-5, marking a very different era of Oregon football. This is a great example of why these comparisons are not to say who is better, but to show how Dante Moore's body of work stands with the others.

Moore had an on-and-off year as a true freshman for UCLA, then spent a year at Oregon, where he sat behind Dillon Gabriel. Just like Mariota, Herbert did not have the benefit of that experience. Herbert and Moore are tied in touchdowns and interceptions through seven starts, while Herbert has more passing and rushing yards. Moore edges out Herbert in completion percentage, yards per rushing attempt, and the overall Ducks record.

Bo Nix vs. Dante Moore

When Bo Nix came to Oregon, he already had 3 years of college football with Auburn under his belt. His stint at Auburn was up and down, but he was ready to turn it around with Oregon. His first start was a rough one against Georgia in Week 1 of 2022, but after that, it was smooth sailing for Bo. In his first seven starts with the Ducks, Nix threw for 1,809 yards, 17 TDs, and 3 INTs with a completion percentage of 71.5.

Nix was not quite the runner Mariota was throughout his career, but he was still a threat. In that seven-game stretch, Nix ran for 382 yards and 8 TDs on 48 attempts. Similar to Moore, Nix led the Ducks to a 6-1 record. If you really wanted to make comparisons, Nix to Moore is far more fair than Moore to Herbert or Mariota. But Nix was far more experienced than Moore is now.

While Nix leads Moore in passing yardage and rushing stats through the given stretch, Moore has more touchdowns. More impressively, Moore has a higher completion percentage than Nix did at the time. Nix was known for his accurate passing and high completion rate, so this is a good sign for Moore.

Dillon Gabriel vs. Dante Moore

On the topic of college experience, Dillon Gabriel beats all the quarterbacks we have talked about. Gabriel played 6 years of college football and had 63 starts between UCF, Oklahoma, and Oregon. While only spending one year with the Ducks, Gabriel accomplished a great amount, leading the Ducks to an undefeated regular season, a Big Ten Championship, and being a Heisman finalist.

Gabriel had the benefit of starting his Ducks career with one of the most talented rosters in Oregon football history. In his first seven starts with the Ducks, Gabriel threw for 2,080 yards, 15 TDs, and 4 INTs with a 77 percent completion clip. The extra experience helps Gabriel beat out all the Ducks we have mentioned in passing yardage and completion percentage. On the ground, Gabriel rushed 33 times for 92 yards and 4 TDs. The Ducks were 7-0 in this stretch.

In the context of Oregon football, Gabriel had the better start with a 3 year head start of playing in college on Moore. Dante edges out Gabriel in the rushing stats besides touchdowns.

Conclusion

Dante Moore is in a really good spot. This piece was not intended to be a 1:1 comparison, but just a way of looking at how different QBs started their careers. Moore has been amazing this season and has all the potential to be an Oregon great. If he stays another year, the sky is the limit for him and the Oregon Ducks