College Football

Dillon Gabriel's mentorship has Dante Moore poised to be next great Oregon QB

Published Dec. 31, 2024 6:00 p.m. ET

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Michael Cohen

College Football and College Basketball Writer

LOS ANGELES — The way Oregon wide receiver Tez Johnson described a throw he'd seen during a recent practice caused several sets of eyes to bulge during the Rose Bowl's media day event earlier this week. Johnson, whose affability and loquaciousness were among the main attractions at the Sheraton Grand on Monday morning, said he'd witnessed a "no-look, 60-yard bomb" after which the quarterback who hurled it giddily retreated "like he's Steph Curry," the convention-defying point guard from the Golden State Warriors known in part for launching deep shots and then taking off the other way, not even watching to see the ball careen through the net. Such is the confidence of a player who's buried more 3-pointers than anyone in NBA history.

At first blush, it would be easy to assume Johnson was referencing starting quarterback Dillon Gabriel, a high-profile transfer from Oklahoma who developed into a Heisman Trophy finalist this season and owns the NCAA records for career touchdowns (187) and career starts (62) as his dazzling six-year stint in college football nears its conclusion. Gabriel, who spent three years at UCF and two at Oklahoma, will enter the Rose Bowl rematch with Ohio State ranked ninth in the country in passing yards (3,558), tied for 10th in passing touchdowns (28) and tied for second in completion percentage (73.2%). He's guided the Ducks to a 13-0 record, which includes a victory in the Big Ten Championship game.

Dillon Gabriel has helped guide Oregon to a perfect 13-0 record heading into the Duck's CFP quarterfinal matchup against Ohio State.

But Johnson guaranteed that the player who threw such a mind-bending pass will be among the Heisman Trophy finalists next season, in 2025, which immediately dumped Gabriel from the conversation. "One-hundred percent," Johnson deadpanned when questioned about his lofty claim. That's how good he believes Oregon's backup quarterback, Dante Moore, really is. 

"It's something you ain't seen yet," said Johnson, who also recalled moments when Moore zinged side-arm passes between the heads of Oregon's offensive linemen. "That guy can throw a ball like no other. I ain't never seen nothing like it. He's so ready. He's so ready to play. ... You can go ask anybody about Dante Moore and how he throws the football and watch what they say. The guy is talented."

So talented, in fact, that Moore landed nearly 70 spots higher than Gabriel in the 247Sports transfer portal rankings last winter when both players sought new destinations, a byproduct of the former's youth and potential. Moore had been the No. 4 overall prospect and the No. 3 quarterback in the country for the 2023 recruiting cycle, a player so coveted by blue-blood programs that former Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh offered the Detroit native a scholarship in eighth grade. He spent five months committed to Oregon during the summer and fall of 2022 before flipping to UCLA during the early signing period, eventually making nine appearances and five starts for the Bruins as a true freshman last year. His decision to transfer came shortly after UCLA's regular season ended in a deflating loss to California, and Moore committed to Oregon within a week. Gabriel joined the program five days later after eschewing an opportunity to enter the NFL Draft.

That Oregon was able to land, and keep, both quarterbacks underscores how adroitly head coach Dan Lanning and his staff are handling player acquisition in the modern era, a herculean task that requires as much foresight and financial backing as it does raw recruiting prowess. In Gabriel, the Ducks secured one of the most experienced signal-callers in college football history and a player capable of guiding them deep into the College Football Playoff. In Moore, they added one of the most coveted underclassman quarterbacks in the portal to ensure that life after Gabriel would include a seamless transition. The work Gabriel has done mentoring Moore behind the scenes is one of the reasons why Oregon's future is exceedingly bright, regardless of what happens against Ohio State or throughout the remainder of this year's College Football Playoff. 

Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel has mentored backup Dante Moore behind the scenes, which is one reason why Oregon's future is exceedingly bright.

"My biggest thing for myself in the portal [was] preparation and getting developed," Moore told FOX Sports. "I felt like I needed to find a great spot that can prepare me for my upcoming future. When I hit the portal, I kind of knew right away I was coming here. I was committed to Oregon in high school. I knew the staff really well, I knew the players on the team already, so coming in felt comfortable. But the biggest thing for me is just getting prepared for the future and getting developed."

While a comparison can be drawn between the hierarchy at Oregon and the quarterback depth chart at Ohio State, where the Buckeyes added veteran Kansas State transfer Will Howard as their star and signed five-star Alabama transfer Julian Sayin for the future, the differentiating factor is how much Moore played during his only season at UCLA. Where Sayin was barely a month into his collegiate career as an early enrollee, Moore logged more than 400 snaps for the Bruins as a part-time starter, ending the year with 1,610 passing yards, 11 touchdowns and nine interceptions. With that amount of experience and a five-star recruiting pedigree, it would have been easy for Moore to pick a new program that guaranteed him the starting job in 2024. Just as it would have been easy for him to renege on his pledge to Oregon once Gabriel entered the fold.

Instead, Moore and Gabriel have become thick as thieves during their only season together in Eugene, even though the latter maintains an unbreakable stranglehold on playing time. They've roomed together for every road trip, including the Rose Bowl, as well as the nights in Oregon's team hotel before home games at Autzen Stadium. Those experiences, Moore said, are filled with collaborative film breakdowns and endless discussions about the importance of routinized preparation on and off the field. The leadership lessons he's gleaned from Gabriel have helped Moore step into his own during team meetings, where Johnson said the sophomore now teaches things to the entire offense like a seasoned pro. All of the quarterbacks on the Ducks' roster gather for movie nights, golf outings and video game sessions that provide additional settings for Gabriel to impart pearls of wisdom on his younger backups. 

"Connection is one of our DNA traits," Lanning said. "And I think it's really shown with those [two] guys, how they operate day in and day out in practice. One thing that both those guys do a phenomenal job of, as well as everybody on our team, is spending time with their teammates outside of football and working to create those moments."

Though Moore has only made four appearances all season — none of which exceeded 13 snaps in a single game — everything about the 2024 campaign is unfolding the way he'd hoped when leaving UCLA last winter: from the improvements he has made under offensive coordinator Will Stein, who is now regarded as one of the brightest minds in the sport, to the ongoing education he receives from Gabriel, to Oregon's pursuit of the first national championship in program history, which will continue on Wednesday against Ohio State. 

Moore knows he's helping Oregon bridge the gap from Gabriel to the world beyond. And soon enough, the chance to unleash no-look, 60-yard bombs will be his.

"He believed in Coach Lanning and the program that he was building," Gabriel said, "and the people that are already here and the track record of the people he brings in or has brought in. I think Dante is right where he needs to be."

Michael Cohen covers college football and basketball for FOX Sports with an emphasis on the Big Ten. Follow him on Twitter @Michael_Cohen13.

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