McLaughlin: Should Oregon Expect Dante Moore To Put Up Big 2025 Numbers?
By SPENCER McLAUGHLIN
Contributor, 750 The Game
I expect Dante Moore to be Oregon’s starting QB in 2025. He hasn’t been officially named that publicly, but his career trajectory lines up too perfectly. Austin Novosad is a really talented kid, who wasn’t recruited to Oregon to be a backup. Dan Lanning and his staff couldn’t possibly have known Moore would eventually find his way to Eugene after flipping to UCLA in 2023.
Both guys have looked really good in moments during their Spring Game appearances with the Ducks. The pinpoint accuracy into tight windows is particularly impressive to me. I truly believe both can showcase those skills on Saturdays this Fall, but that Moore will get the first crack at doing so. I can’t imagine he transferred to Oregon to sit behind Dillon Gabriel last year without some level of assurance he would be the starter for 2025.
So what should we expect?
Dante Moore was a 5-star QB in the 2023 cycle, and was on track to be just the second ever such signal caller to commit to the Ducks. Ty Thompson didn’t work out across a couple of staffs, but Dante Moore is not resigned to that fate at all. There is a crossover similarity between the two that has to be considered: 5-star rankings are MOSTLY an assessment of physical traits.
The speed of major college football compared to most high schools is almost like playing a new sport (Dante Moore is from Michigan, where the high school football talent is somewhere between Oregon and Texas–it’s alright). That jump in competition was on display for Moore in 2023 at UCLA. After winning the starting job following the first couple games of the year for Chip Kelly’s team, he was benched. He formulated the unfortunate habit of throwing the ball to the other team. He looked overwhelmed, with all of his arm talent and precise ball placement skills becoming background noise to a lack of quick processing.
Now 2 years later with a full season as a backup behind a veteran in Dillon Gabriel, I have Marcus Mariota on my mind.
No, Dante Moore isn’t winning the Heisman this year. Maybe in 2026 if he returns to the Ducks to start for a second season in Eugene. Mariota took the reins in 2012 from a 2-year veteran QB in Darron Thomas. He redshirted in 2011, as Dante Moore did in 2024. He held a clipboard and watched a veteran lead the Ducks to a conference title and postseason berth.
Marcus Mariota’s first year stats saw him register a 68.5% completion rate for just under 2700 yards and 32 TDs against 6 INTs. The part I think it’s fair to expect for Moore is the completion percentage. Dillon Gabriel (72.9%) and Bo Nix (77.4%) both set personal records in that area whilst running Will Stein’s offense. Both guys had good offensive lines (Bo’s was better in 2023) and strong receiving corps. Moore should have both.
I actually feel pretty good saying that Stein’s system will let Moore throw for more than 2,677 yards as Mariota did in 2012. Marcus ran a Chip Kelly offense that placed a higher premium on rushing the ball, partially driven by his own legs as he ran for over 700 yards in his first season at the helm.
Dante Moore knows what not to do. He’s taken the time to work on his own development. He has a good team and a really good coaching staff around him. All the ingredients are there for Moore to have a really good year, with the potential to put up a Heisman-caliber season in 2026.
For 2025, it’s all about proving that he can live up to the 5-star hype. Football is less than 100 days away.
Spencer McLaughlin is an Oregon Ducks football contributor to 750 The Game. He also hosts the “Locked On Oregon Ducks” and “Locked On College Football” podcasts and has work featured throughout the season here.