Dante Moore’s name is suddenly everywhere, from The Athletic Football Show to Big Ten Network broadcasts, and it’s not hard to see why.
The former UCLA quarterback, once humbled as a freshman in Westwood and then a backup in Eugene, is now rewriting his story in his first year as Oregon’s starter.
Through two games of the 2025 season, Moore has gone from developmental question mark to one of the most polarizing names on the 2026 NFL Draft watchlist.
From UCLA struggles to Oregon reset
At UCLA in 2023, Moore showed flashes but often looked like a freshman trying to survive. In nine games (five starts), he completed just 53.5% of his passes for 1,610 yards, 11 touchdowns, and nine interceptions.
He transferred to Oregon after the season, only to spend 2024 learning from the sidelines while Dillon Gabriel led the Ducks to a Big Ten title.
That extra year of patience may have been the turning point. Two starts into 2025, Moore has completed 77.3% of his passes for 479 yards, six touchdowns, and zero turnovers.
Nearly half of his UCLA passing yards and over half of his touchdowns have already been matched in just eight quarters.
As The Athletic’s NFL Draft expert Dane Brugler put it: “I think two things happened for him. First, he was humbled a little bit. Second, he learned how to play quarterback.”
A perfect Oregon fit
The Ducks have made quarterback transfers a pipeline to success. Bo Nix elevated himself into the 12th overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft after two years in Eugene. Gabriel arrived for one season, led Oregon to a Big Ten championship, and turned it into a third-round selection.
Moore, though, may be in an entirely different conversation.
“He’s an even different level of talent,” Big Ten Network analyst Jake Butt said after calling Oregon’s Week 2 win over Montana State. “I think Dante Moore will be a Top 10 pick.”
Brugler agrees Moore’s development has been accelerated under offensive coordinator Will Stein: “He deserves his due for the way he’s played. He’s got a really smooth stroke as a passer."
"And I’ve been really impressed with his pocket movements. He has a good feel for where the heat is coming from and just how to access the space around him to buy those little half seconds to let the route come open.”
Draft stock debate already underway
That duality is why Moore is such a fascinating study. Pro Football Focus hasn’t even ranked him in its 2026 Big Board yet, while national analysts are already dropping “Top 10 pick” predictions. Two weeks in, the consensus doesn’t exist — and maybe that’s the point.
If he sustains this level of play, Moore will climb draft boards quickly, perhaps even forcing an NFL decision after 2025.
“If he keeps this up, or anything close to it, he’s going to be in that mix, someone we’re talking about at Heisman time," Brugler added. "...then even after the year talking about, ‘Hey, you have an NFL decision to make.’”
For now, Moore’s story is just getting started. But after a rocky UCLA debut, a redshirt year of patience, and a fast Oregon breakout, it’s clear he’s no longer just another name on a roster — he’s one of the most intriguing prospects in college football.