Does Oregon Develop Players? Dante Moore is the Proof

For years there has been a myth propagated by opposing fans that Oregon doesn’t develop players. That myth is built largely on the number of transfer players that Oregon has signed, especially at quarterback. For the past four seasons the Ducks have started a transfer at QB. This time it’s different.

Dante Moore has a very large decision to make in the coming weeks, and that decision is going to dictate what the Ducks will do in the portal next month. Most fans and media could not have imagined this predicament six months ago. Moore is projected by many mocks to be a top 5 pick in the 2026 draft. That was simply not the case back in August.  

Was it a fluke that Dante Moore went from a middle-tier QB at the start of the season to one of the best signal-callers in college football? Or does Will Stein and the Ducks deserve some credit for this meteoric rise?

Completely off the Radar

Let’s travel back in time. Way back to the summer of 2025. While the team and the fans felt very confident that Dante Moore would come in and be a stud, the media and the draft experts weren’t so sure.

To be fair, while he was formerly a 5-star in the class of 2023, and the third best player overall, he hadn’t set the world on fire at UCLA. In 9 games with the Bruins he had 1,610 yards on 53.5% completions. He had 11 touchdowns and 9 interceptions. His QBR was 32.6 on the season.

CBS ranked him as the 31^st best QB in the FBS going into the 2025 season. They wrote, “Moore learned the ropes of offensive coordinator Will Stein’s system last season while redshirting and backing up Dillon Gabriel. Now, it’s time for him to show the potential which made him a five-star prospect in the Class of 2023.”

Not too critical but also not exactly heaping praise on the 20-year-old QB.

ESPN and the Athletic both had their own QB rankings for the 2025 season and they broke the players into different tiers. ESPN put him in the 5^th tier, which ended up being a pretty good tier actually. It included Ty Simpson from Alabama and Gunner Stockton from Georgia. But he was behind a lot of QBs that ended up underperforming this season.

Their top tier was Cade Klubnik from Clemson, Garrett Nussmeier from LSU, John Mateer from Oklahoma, Drew Allar from Penn State and LaNorris Sellers from South Carolina.

The Athletic put him in their third tier, which they defined as, “Most teams would be happy with a quarterback of this caliber. Great ability and a solid body of work, but they have some flaws. On their best days, they can be great, but there can be an underwhelming moment or two.”

They ranked him #24 on their list and it was once again a wait-and-see approach from their writer.

Climbing up the Mocks

While Moore is currently considered a consensus first round pick and by most a top 5 prospect, that wasn’t always the case. In fact, the NFL draft analysts were right in step with the college football media on his projections for 2025.

Moore did not appear in the June 30^th list from ESPN, or the August 16^th mock from ProFootballNetwork. Ryan Wilson and Josh Edwards from CBS didn’t have him in the top 32 in either June or September.

This steady increase in draft position and visibility is largely thanks to the play of Moore but also the offense that Oregon has built around him. Will Stein has put Moore in a position to succeed and he has taken full advantage of this opportunity.

Michael Renner from CBS finally added him at #12 on September 22^nd and had this to say about Moore, “Moore has been the breakout star at the quarterback position this season. After starting his career at UCLA, Moore sat behind Dillon Gabriel last year. In four games this season, his arm talent and athleticism are on full display.”

Oregon Clearly Develops Their QBs

It makes no sense to claim that Oregon doesn’t develop their quarterbacks. Or any player for that matter. Even if you take out the historical development of stars like Marcus Mariota, Justin Herbert, and Joey Harrington, the Ducks have had substantial success in the Dan Lanning Era.

Dante Moore has been markedly better with the Ducks than he was at UCLA. Some of that comes with experience, some with just better overall talent, but the numbers speak for themselves.

It would be one thing if this was just Moore, but Bo Nix had significant improvement as well. Nix showed drastic growth in accuracy and production after coming to Oregon from Auburn.

Dillon Gabriel arrived as a more finished product. He had been successful at UCF and Oklahoma, and his stats only marginally improved in some areas with the Ducks. Still, Gabriel was able to improve his accuracy while maintaining the same production that he had at Oklahoma.

Portal Doesn’t Necessarily Mean Perfect

It’s easy to say that Oregon only brings in transfer players and doesn’t develop their own talent, but that’s an extremely narrow view. Portal players aren’t all created equal and some require more coaching than others. Dan Lanning and his staff put guys in a position for success and to get them drafted as high as possible.

The modern landscape of college football roster building must include both recruiting and the transfer portal. If Oregon loses Dante Moore after the 2025 season, they will need to hit the portal to find a replacement. A team on the same level as the Ducks is in contention for the national championship every season.

Oregon can’t afford to have a down year. They have too much talent to waste a season while they go through the ups and downs of a young QB with no snaps. That doesn’t mean that they don’t develop the players they bring in through the portal.

Moore and Nix are perfect examples of guys who had a scuffed image nationally. They came to Oregon to rehabilitate their draft stock. Nix was drafted 12th overall to the Denver Broncos. Where will Dante Moore ultimately end up?

Wherever and whenever Moore is drafted, it will certainly be higher than anyone thought six months ago. The coaching staff at Oregon deserve some credit for that.