Dan Lanning discusses the difficulty of replacing Dillon Gabriel at quarterback

For the third time in as many seasons as the head coach of the Oregon Ducks, Dan Lanning needs a new starting quarterback. He’ll be replacing Dillon Gabriel in 2025, who is now in the NFL, with a relatively inexperienced new starter.

Lanning knows that replacing Gabriel is no easy task. Recently, he made an appearance on Always College Football. There, he broke down the challenges that Oregon is facing at the quarterback position going into 2025.

“I think it’s always about picking the right person,” Dan Lanning said. “It’s always about picking the right people. You want competitive guys with competitive spirit. Guys that are great players. Guys that are committed to trying to be the best version of themselves.”

Last season, Dillon Gabriel was in his sixth season of college football. He brought with him plenty of experience and in his one season at Oregon, he led the Ducks to an unbeaten regular season, a Big Ten Championship, and a trip to the College Football Playoff. He did that on the back of 3,857 passing yards and 30 touchdowns.

“A lot of people mess up an evaluation,” Lanning said. “For us, we try to start with people. What kind of people are you bringing aboard? That will always be our process. Guys that want to get better. Growth mindset that have the talent that can play at this level.”

The expectation is that Dillon Gabriel will largely be replaced by Dante Moore. A former five-star recruit who initially went to UCLA and started as a freshman for the Bruins, totaling nine appearances. He then transferred to Oregon ahead of 2024 and took time to develop into the system.

Beyond Moore, Oregon lists five other quarterbacks on their roster. That includes Luke Moga, Brock Thomas, Akili Smith Jr, Ryder Hayes, and Austin Novosad.

Dan Lanning shares the key to Oregon carrying momentum from 2024 season

The Oregon Ducks are hoping to carry momentum from 2024 into 2025 and build on that success once they begin their postseason run. That’s something that Dan Lanning believes goes back to maintaining high standards.

“I think it starts with some of the standards that our players have set,” Lanning said. “They start to develop ownership of what’s happened here in the past. I mean, you remember being a part of great teams and all of a sudden, it’s like ‘No, this is how we do it. This is what we do.’ And our players are really carrying on that mantra heading into this season while also realizing last season has nothing to do with the next one. Which makes it fun.”