Oregon Fans Will Love What Dan Lanning Said About Dante Moore

The Oregon Ducks officially began their first day of spring football practices on March 12. Oregon coach Dan Lanning spoke to the media after practice with plenty of questions to address.

While Lanning discussed where players are in their injury recoveries, he also talked about development. Lanning praised his quarterback, Dante Moore, who is in his third offseason with the program. Ducks fans will love what Lanning had to say about Moore's leadership this offseason.

Everything Coach Dan Lanning Said the First Day of Spring Football

oregon ducks dan lanning dante moore quarterback dylan raiola injury spring game drew mehringer chris hampton koa ka'ai — Oregon head coach Dan Lanning leads a spring practice with the Ducks in Eugene, Ore. Thursday, April, 13, 2023. Sports Oregon Spring Practice | Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK

Quarterback Dante Moore’s Development:

“Today it shifts a little bit right, because we're doing walkthroughs. He's a great communicator. Has a really good understanding of what we're trying to accomplish on field. Obviously, the experience that he's able to lean on, but now the game speeds up, right?”

“It's a difference in a walk-through and everything going full speed. So, he's going to level up. But he's certainly stepping up from a leadership standpoint. He's a coach on the field. He's able to take advantage of that. But you know, day one, always there's an opportunity for us to get better.”

Why Drew Mehringer And Chris Hampton Were Ready For Coordinator Roles:

“Anytime you're able to promote, it's because you get to see what guys do every single day. It's a body of work. You might interview with somebody three or four times on a Zoom or have them to visit. But the best indication of what I'm going to get in the future is how those guys' positions have performed in the past, how they've worked with their teammates.”

“We were able to watch Drew, and you're able to evaluate what did Terrance Ferguson, what did Pat Herbert, what Kenyon Sadiq have done, what did Jamari Johnson have done in the program, his role in our offense and how it's grown. He's been a part of it since day one. You're able to say, okay, I have a lot of confidence in what this moving forward with him in a leadership role.”

“Same thing with coach Hamp. Our secondary has gotten better every single year that he's been here. Guys are playing at a high level. You talk about guys performing beyond their ability, having some of those guys having their best season, being a part of our program, and I think that's a great evaluation for me, getting to see it every single day in this building, what's it going to look like moving in, into the future.”

“And every one of those guys that had an opportunity to level up, they would tell you that a lot of that product is because of the players and the coaches that are around them, and what allows them to do that. I think that's the way you can evaluate a healthy organization, is when you have the opportunity for guys to move up within the organization.”

The Learning Process For His New Coordinators:

“Work. And then it's evaluating the things that we haven't done. So, even before they stepped into these roles – I assume you're talking about Drew and Chris – like those guys we had, you call it periods last fall, last spring, and I'm always trying to prepare what's next.

“So, there's periods of practice where those guys were calling a game just like they would if they were sitting in the coordinator position. So, a lot of that prep started a year ago. It started two years ago. They've sat in that seat, they've worn that hat, but now it's going to be more of that.”

“How do I play it like a game? We have periods throughout practice, opportunities within the building to simulate the game before we get to the game.”

How Being Involved in the Run And Pass Game Prepared Drew Mehringer For Offensive Coordinator Role:

“Again, not specifically just being a tight end position, but his role in our offense the last few years. He's been very involved in all phases for us on the offensive side of the ball. So really that's that more specifically played into the factor of him being able to contribute and help us.”

Taking the Next Step as a Program:

“It starts day by day. Starts with the day. So, the best thing we can do to continue to improve and get better in our program is to be the best we can today. And we get tomorrow, we'll worry about tomorrow. But there's steps. There's operation that you want to improve.”

“How quickly we can become a team is really important. There's some new faces. There's some old faces returning. It's guys getting uncomfortable really quick and attacking what they have to every day.”

Lessons Learned From 2025:

“We didn't finish the way we wanted to, but there's a lot of lessons learned. I think that film's been watched a lot by all of us. And it's a new group now. It's a new team. Every year is individual. What we accomplished last year has nothing to do with what we're going to accomplish this year, but it allows you to say, okay, what can we add? What are the wrinkles that we can adjust? How can we play off of our personnel? There's some different personnel this year than it was last year, so all those things play into it.”

Oregon Quarterback Dylan Raiola Update:

“He's working. He was able to practice with us today. We're being conscientious of where he's at as he comes back, but he's pushing, and it's new for him. He's coming to a new system, but he's learning it well. He's definitely a cerebral player that can make the throws. So very excited about where he's at and where he's continued to grow.”

The Quarterback Competition:

“It's like the same it is in every room. Guys go out there compete and making each other better, right? And every one of these guys cheer for each other's success. They want to see each other. When you step on the field and practice, it's offense versus defense. Offense wants to win. Defense wants to win.”

“So, these guys compete at the highest level. When they're out there on the field, they're hoping for each other's success, because the stronger we are as a team, the better we're going to be as a team. So, they've worked really, really well together, just like every position we have out there.”

Kamran Araghi And Koa Ka’ai Promotions:

“Titles might adjust a little bit. But you know coach Araghi, I mean, he coached our edge last year, right? Koa coached our quarterback last year. So it might look different on paper to somebody outside looking in, but those guys were very involved in what we do day to day operationally last year, and they've earned the opportunity to continue to elevate.”

How Jadon Canady And Dillon Thieneman’s Production Last Season Influenced How He Build This Secondary:

“Always you're trying to play the two things: people that fit your system and have the character and the athletic ability to fit what you do, and then your job as a coach to be able to make sure the scheme fits the way your players do. And that's part of what the spring’s figuring out. We got on both sides of the ball. We got a multitude of calls that we can execute. We got to figure out which ones we can execute the best, and then how that fits our personnel that’s going to be on the field.”

What He’s Seen From Transfer Safety Koi Perich:

“Well, his football’s serious. It right start there. The guy's infatuated with ball. That stuck out, even when he came on his visit here, and he wasn't really interested in seeing where he's gonna live or what that looks like. He's ready to watch some films. So, I think that carries over and very similar to the standpoint of how Dillon (Thieneman) operated and what he wanted to create while he was here.”

Losing Deep Threat Wide Receiver Malik Benson:

“That's what spring ball is about. We’re gonna figure out who can be that deep threat. But I always think, Malik did an unbelievable job here, and I'm really excited for his opportunity at the next level, because he certainly deserves it. But as the season started, he had to become that.”

“People will fall into roles and take advantage of roles when they take advantage of opportunities. So, we're gonna figure out who takes advantage of the opportunity to press the ball down the field and go attack it like Malik did.”

Lessons Learned From 2025 Wide Receiver Room Injuries:

“That's football, so you don't know what's going to happen, what's going to change throughout the season. We started last season with a lot of options. We might have been missing one. But ultimately, that adjusts as the year goes on. And it'll be the same thing this year. There'll be there'll be some injuries within positions that we have to adjust and adapt.”

“And we've shown that we can do that, whether that's utilizing other personnel groups, but being healthy certainly allows us to have our whole repertoire and the ability to use that.”

Wide Receiver Dylan Gresham’s Status:

“It's tough. And right now, it's still a little uncertain on his future, but he's attacked it with the right mindset. I think football at some point ends for everybody, and sometimes you hope it doesn't end for a guy like Dylan as soon as it did last season. We'll see what it continues to look like moving forward. But that's, that's the everyday battle, and that's, that's a wakeup call for anybody out there playing ball. It can be taken away from you at any second.”

The Foundation of the Defensive Line With Starters Returning:

“Well, those guys have to be in charge of setting the standard. And any healthy defensive line is going to have a lot of guys that are able to play and rotate. So, it's not going to be just those four up front.”

“For us to be the team that we have to be, you're going to see a lot of guys step out there on the defensive line for us, but those guys coming back speaks to the maturity of their decision on, ‘Hey, there's an opportunity for me to improve. There's some things I still want to go to accomplish here at Oregon.’ And we expect them to be a piece that can really help us get there.”

What Success For Edge Rusher Nasir Wyatt Looks Like:

“There's a huge difference in coming from high school and stepping out on the field, especially for the multitude of things that we do in our defense. But now, Nas is a guy that has a lot better understanding of what we're trying to accomplish.”

“He understands that his ability to play more is based on him being on the field on first and second down, not just pass rush situations. He's done a great job with his body. Now it's about maintaining that and continuing to gain the strength and the weight necessary to be at every down player for us. But he's a dynamic threat that we have to figure out how we can utilize, because he certainly makes an impact when he's on the field.”

Recruiting Transfer Cornerback Aaron Scott Jr.:

“The message really didn't change. For Aaron, we pointed out some of the same things. And I think again, the more you build over time, you get to really point to the past and say that's an indicator of the future.”

“And there's some things that we've been able to do with guys in the secondary here in the past that really point to the future, what that's going to look like. And it involves having players like Aaron that can come compete. He's a really good player. Had big roles in his previous school, so excited to see him grow and develop that.”

Jerry Mixon's Leadership At Linebacker:

“If you're good enough, you're old enough, if you can play above the line football. And I think there's a group of guys in that room that have the ability to play above the line football. Jerry did that at a high level at times last year, and I expect him to grow and get better.”

“But he's growing over time. He's become a better communicator. He's a guy that like you said, he can be that quarterback at times on the defense. We'll get those same things from other guys with experience, a healthy Devon Jackson, Dylan Williams, Gavin Nix, Brayden Platt. There's a lot of guys in that room that can step up. There's a lot of new face in the room that can step up. Will Straton, and all those guys are earning opportunities as we go through the spring.”

The Opportunity For Young Offensive Linemen This Spring:

“Really, probably the same way last year. Last year, we lost multiple starters on the offensive line. It might have been four the year before. So, when you lose guys, because you're going to continue to have attrition, and guys get the opportunity to go to the NFL, or it creates opportunities for new guys. And if you're growing and developing, you get a chance to take advantage of that. But nothing's promised. It's all about work.”

Points of Progress For Special Teams:

“Just growth. Special teams is the first thing we do every single day, right after our flex period, and we're gonna get a lot of snaps and a lot of opportunities to figure out exactly where we're at.”

“And then coach (Joe) Lorig has always done an outstanding job of adjusting and adapting the personnel that we have. That's the expectation again this year, figure out where their strengths are, where can we play into those strengths and utilize them.”

His Thoughts On NIL And Federal Legislation:

“I try to focus on what I do control. So, we adjust to the rules as they adjust. It’s something we don't currently control. I think it would be great if there's some uniform, but again, I'm always going to say, before we make a new rule, let's make sure we have a plan to enforce it. I would say, based on the previous 12 months, I don't know where the enforcement piece is playing into this and what it looks like, so we'll continue to adapt and adjust. That's college football.”

The Process of Hiring Ryan Switzer:

“Coach (Ross) Douglas and coach (Ra’Shaad Samples), I think they all kind of went through – this shows how young they are – but they all went through combine work or like that together, so there was a little bit of that. And then obviously, anybody that's familiar with college football is familiar with what he was able to accomplish, but there's a lot of things he can add to our program with his experience as a returner.”

“You always look to be able to add hats in the building that can help contribute and make your players better. And he's got a lot of energy. He’s got great experience. And I think there's some real value in that for us, having Ryan on our staff.”

His Confidence in Offensive Line Development:

“I think we have size and athleticism. I think coach (A’lique) Terry and the group that he works with over time have really proven that they're great at building a cohesive unit. And we have some guys that we've recruited really well there over the last few years that we want to be able to see step up and take charge and take advantage of the opportunity.”

Opening Statement:

“It's always hard to grade a day one. What you're really looking for is effort and execution, because we're not in full pads yet. We're in spiders, but I saw guys run to the ball, moving with a purpose, doing a really good job today, out there in the field. Some good communication, and then a lot of stuff that we can improve. Obviously, we're gonna look at the film and evaluate it, but certainly some new faces. But I feel like we have a good operation going right now.”

New Players Who Have Caught His Eye:

“Probably too early to say that. Got to go back and watch the film from today. But you like seeing some young guys that have stepped up now and now in year two or year three, and they take on more of a leadership role, more of a vocal role, and I think you start to see some of that grow.”

The Construction of the New Practice Facility:

“It's pretty awesome. I always think a healthy University, you're going to see some buildings going up. And it's really awesome to be able to see that going on in our backyard, and the impact that's going to make for us in future seasons, and how that's going to be really a weapon for our players and our coaches, for us to continue to advance.”