Oregon Ducks News: Soccer battles to a tie, competition high, Moore looks like the man

Soccer battles Portland Pilots to a 0-0 tie

Two saves by goal keeper Caeley Goldstein propelled the Ducks to a scoreless tie in their second match of the year at Pape Field Sunday. After a win Thursday against Weber State, the women start their season 1-0-1.

Next they travel to Hawaii for matches with Sacramento State and the University of Hawaii on August 24, part of the Outrigger Soccer Kickoff.

New head coach Tracy Joyner told Max Koebel of the Oregon Daily Emerald, “I felt like on Thursday, on both sides of the ball, we needed to be way more aggressive defensively, in transition, and getting into attack. I felt like there was huge growth that took place.”

The Ducks took 8 shots in the match but missed on all of them. An early scoring chance by forward Taylor Bryan went wide by about a foot.

Big Ten play begins September 13 with a match at UCLA, TV on Big Ten+.

Glimpse from practice reveals the high level of competition in passing game

In this shot Daylen Austin and Na'eem Offord battle Dillon Gresham for the ball. We don't get to see practice this year and reports from coaches are clipped and deliberately vague, but the picture tells a story of a highly competitive, back-and-forth camp.

Dan Lanning told the Big Ten Network during their visit to camp, "I like where our team is at right now." For three seasons the program has stacked talent, and with the season opener just 12 days away, there's a growing belief that this could be the most balanced and talented roster ever. The pictures and video suggests that could be true.

Montana State is a top-rated FCS school and certainly not a team to be taken for granted, yet the Bobcats have just five players on their roster over 300 pounds. The Ducks have 22.

Dante Moore looks like the man

If Austin Novosad were to win the job as starting quarterback, he'd have to be an incredible player, because the murmurs and hints out of Oregon camp are that Moore has been lights-out with his accuracy and development.

Yogi Roth from the Big Ten Network said, "He’s got such a unique ability to throw a catchable ball. He can place it all over the field. I believe that Dante Moore has the chance to really be an elite player in this league."

There's never been any doubt about Moore's throwing talent. He won two state championships at Martin Luther King High School in Detroit. The questions have centered around his decision-making after a rough debut season in an unstable situation at UCLA.

He's spent a year in the Will Stein Celebrity Quarterback Rehab to become a complete quarterback. If Novosad beats him out, he must have had an incredible camp.

Teammates praise his development as a leader. At Big Ten Media Days Matayo Uiagalelei told Erik Skopil of 247Sports, "I think he's one of the best teammates I've ever seen. I'm by his locker everyday. I talk to him everyday. Maybe it's just like his personality, but he's just like easy to talk to — he's really down-to-earth."

He passes the character test. In June he donated $10,000 of his NIL money to his old high school.

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