What Oregon Quarterback Dante Moore Said After Crushing Rutgers

After dropping their first game of the season in their last outing, the No. 8 Oregon Ducks bounced back in a big way with a 56-10 win over Rutgers.

Oregon quarterback Dante Moore had one of the most efficient games of his career in the win. He completed 15 of 20 passes for 290 yards and four touchdowns in a strong bounce back effort from the Ducks' quarterback. Although it was an effcient night for Moore, it wasn't a perfect one. He threw his fourth interception of the season on Oregon's second-to-last drive of the third quarter.

What did Moore say after the win? The redshirt sophomore again displayed maturity that Oregon fans will love.

"I think it starts with the head man (Oregon coach Dan Lanning)," said Moore after the win about leadership this week. "He texted me after the game (vs. Indiana) ... when you have a tough week, you can take it as a loss and take is as a lesson."

Oct 11, 2025; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Oregon Ducks quarterback Dante Moore (5) arrives with his teammates before the game against the Indiana Hoosiers at Autzen Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images | Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

"That Monday, he just had that confidence in trust in me still. And as a player, you love that when your head coach has full 100 percent confidence and trust in you. So I feel like overall, as a whole team, he has trust in the whole team. And we attacked this week, understanding that. And it was a tough loss, but Indiana is a great team. But make sure this week we just learn from our mistakes, push through the week, Monday through Friday. And I feel like the whole week we did a great job."

"... We took that loss as a lesson," Moore continued.

Smiles All Around

Oregon Ducks dan lanning schedule Dante moore Kenyon Sadiq Rutgers Scarlet Knights Dakorien Moore Big Ten Will Stein NIL — Oct 18, 2025; Piscataway, New Jersey, USA; Oregon Ducks quarterback Dante Moore (5) warms up before the game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at SHI Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

As a collective, Moore was proud of the way his team responded following their gut wrenching loss to Indiana at home last week. He credited the Ducks' mentality at practice this week, which allowed Oregon to not be tense coming into the game.

"Personally with me, I feel like the way I just have so much confidence in this team and the offense has confidence in me, I feel like as a quarterback when you take that into a Monday practice and nobody is upset and nobody's face is down, and everybody is like 'Five, smile. Get back to yourself'. I kind of feel like I love that," Moore said.

"This whole week we had outliers and things of that nature, but as an offense I told them we needed to smile and get back to our rhythm of play. I felt like today we did a great job...It's just football at the end of the day. We're a great team and I feel like our prep was really good this week," Moore said.

Regardless of the opponent, it was an impressive to see the Ducks bounce back from the loss considering they haven't lost a game in the regular season in over a year.

Run Game

Oregon put up a season-best 750 yards of total offense (415 rushing, 335 passing), which ranks as the fourth-most yards in program history.

The Ducks' 415 rushing yards are most since putting up 477 against California on Nov. 7, 2016. Also, 11.5 yards per rush marks Oregon’s highest in a game since at least 1996.

"I think it starts with coach Terry. Coach Terry is the greatest offensive line coach in the country and in the world. I feel like he dissected this defense really well, understanding the front they're playing, it's a little weird front, but understanding how the linebackers flow and the different ways to get different running backs the ball," Moore said.

"... I have 100 percent confidence in them. I feel like it starts with coach Terry and coach Stein, the whole offensive crew, but coach Terry does a great job. Late nights, early mornings, just preaching to the guys about different schemes and how we're going to block it," Moore continued.

Lessons Learned

Moore said one of the biggest things the Ducks focused on was being able to learn from their mistakes and not dwell on the loss to the Hoosiers.

"We attacked this week understanding that it was a tough loss, Indiana is a great team, but make sure this week we learn from our mistakes, push through the week Monday through Friday. I feel like the whole week we did a great job, offense, defense and special teams," Moore said.

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Superman To The Rescue

Moore's top target on the night was tight end Kenyon Sadiq. The junior tight end has been regarded as one of the top players at his position, but had yet to put together a breakout performance this season. Sadiq reeled in four catches for a career-high 80 yards and two touchdowns, making things easy for Moore and the Ducks' pass attack.

"That's Superman. Having Kenyon at tight end, his speed, his awareness and his confidence in route running, I just love to have him as a tight end. The O-Line gave me great time and he's always going to be open. It just feels good to see him back himself...his route running is something that is big with him and he did a great job today," Moore said.

Sadiq has positioned himself well to be among the top tight ends taken in the upcoming 2026 NFL Draft.

Smiles All Around

Run Game

Lessons Learned

Superman To The Rescue

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