Dan Lanning details how Dante Moore has handled first loss of Oregon career

For the first time all season, in a game against Indiana, Oregon quarterback Dante Moore threw more interceptions than touchdown passes. It was not his best showing.

The Ducks fell 30-20, dropping their first game of the season. So how has Moore, the first-year starter, handled his first loss?

“I think he’s handled it the right way,” coach Dan Lanning said this week. “Everybody looks internally and then goes back and says, ‘OK, what could I have improved on, what could I have done better?’ And I think he saw a lot of moments in that game that he could have played to a higher degree and what he’s capable of.”

Dante Moore had been good enough to surge to the front of On3’s Heisman Trophy poll watch in Week 5 of the season, and he stayed there for an additional week. Potentially the best quarterback in the country.

Then, he hit some tough times against Indiana. He had been sacked only once all year going into the contest. He was dragged down six times by the Hoosiers.

It seemed to affect Dante Moore’s confidence and his timing. He finished the game 21-of-34 passing for 186 yards, with one touchdown and one interception.

Lanning isn’t worried about how he’ll bounce back. Some of Moore’s play was on him, but some of it was also on the coaching staff.

“He’s proven that he’s a good quarterback and he didn’t play to his best on Saturday,” Lanning said. “He knows that. We didn’t put him in the most advantageous situations on Saturday as well, but he came in today and attacked it really well.”

The good news for Dante Moore is he’s got opportunities in front of him to get right. Oregon doesn’t play a currently ranked team until Nov. 22, when it hosts USC.

That’s not to say the upcoming opponents are all slouches, but if Moore is what he purports to be he’ll play well and put Oregon in positions to win. Listening to Lanning, that’s what the Ducks fully expect.