The most impressive thing in Dante Moore's 2-0 start as the Oregon quarterback is how calm and comfortable he looks operating the offense.
Moore runs one of the most explosive attacks in the country. The Ducks sit No. 3 in the nation in scoring at 64 points a game. Against Oklahoma State they hit 10.2 yards per play and led 13-0 after running three plays, 20-0 before the Cowboys got their second first down.
The five-star redshirt sophomore from Detroit, Michigan is a COMPLETELY different quarterback than he was as a true freshman at UCLA under Chip Kelly. He took a year to develop, train and reset himself, learning under Will Stein and Dillon Gabriel and it has made all the difference.
Think about this, too: In the first two games he's completed 33-44 passes (77.3 percent) for 479 yards and six touchdowns, no interceptions, and he's played just over two quarters in both of those games. Austin Novosad, Luke Moga and Brock Thomas took over in the second halves.
Moga and Novosad each hit a deep ball, Novosad 40 yards to Kyler Kasper, Moga 51 yards to Jeremiah McClellan. Saturday against Oklahoma State Moga displayed his 10.5 100 meter speed, taking off for a 25-yard scramble. He's had another carry for 22.
If the Ducks had an emergency, these are two quarterbacks the team could rally around. And so far Moore's protection has been solid. Poncho Laloulu and the offensive line haven't given up a sack, hardly a hurry.
Stein's been creative in moving the pocket and Moore's underappreciated athleticism increases their ability to handle pressure. The touchdown throw to Dakorien Moore came on a rollout left. The 42-yard TD pass to Malik Benson came on a deep dropback to the right hash with two rushers coming free. Moore delivered a beautiful ball.
Dante Moore has such easy, effortless velocity. Looking poised and confident.
— Ian Cummings (@IC_Draft) September 6, 2025
pic.twitter.com/JnWxQiHu2N
It turns out, the rollout on the Moore-to-Moore touchdown was an ad-lib. Moore saw a blitz coming and adjusted on the fly to give Dakorien time to come open on a double move. It helped when Noah Whittington stepped up and stoned the blitzing linebacker.
Kenyon Sadiq chips the edge rusher before slipping out on his pattern. The play is doubly remarkable because the defender is giving seven yards cushion and the blur-fast wideout is open by five yards when Dante lays the ball out for him.
Dante Moore said this wasn’t a designed role out, but he saw the blitz coming and decided to flush out of the pocket to launch this thing. Speaks to his comfort in the offense, knowing that Dakorien will be open on the double move when he turns back around pic.twitter.com/lN12jwdTwT
— John Evans (@_jpevans_) September 7, 2025
Dakorien's ability to stop-start, change gears and outrace or elude defenders surpasses any Oregon skill player in a long while. He has the dynamic open-field ability of De'Anthony Thomas, combined with superior discipline and work habits.
Writers and pundits doubted Oregon's new starter at quarterback, but Dan Lanning never did. After the game he said, "I think he's maturing real quick. This guy has a great understanding of our offense."
"There's moments in the game where we're about to run a play and he says 'I feel really comfortable about this'. When you have that level of trust between a coach and a player, like 'Hey, this is what you wanna run'? 'OK, lets' go run it'. That's big."
Big also is that Benson, Gary Bryant Jr., Jeremiah McClellan and Kenyon Sadiq have quickly established themselves as reliable options in the passing game. Dakorien is going to draw a lot of double teams, brackets and zones that rotate toward him. Stein can dial up route combinations to exploit that, and already he has the weapons to do so.