Oregon listed star quarterback Dante Moore as “out” for Saturday’s game against Nebraska in its first injury report of the week Wednesday. The Ducks enter this weekend with their backs against the wall after suffering their second loss of the season to UCLA, dropping out of the AP poll altogether after starting the year No. 2.
After a dismal offensive performance against the Bruins, Dan Lanning’s press conference Monday was largely about potential changes on that side of the ball – both in personnel and in personnel structure.
Lanning admitted that “everything is being evaluated” after the loss to UCLA, but he insisted he wouldn’t reveal anything the Ducks plan to do differently before taking the field Saturday against Nebraska. That includes a potential quarterback competition with Moore out for the second straight game.
Dylan Raiola, who led Oregon to a win at USC in place of Moore, had a disastrous performance against UCLA, completing just 6 of 19 passes for 43 yards, throwing two interceptions and losing a fumble. He was pulled in the second half for Brock Thomas, who threw for 149 yards and a touchdown to nearly lead the Ducks to a comeback, but failed to tie the game on a controversial two-point conversion attempt.
Lanning also opened up contests along the offensive line and at some defensive spots. When it comes to the quarterback situation specifically, Lanning divulged some of his thought process on how they will determine whether Raiola or Thomas will take the field in Moore’s place.
Once a national title favorite, Oregon has become college football’s biggest disappointment
Austin Nivison
“(Saturday’s performance) plays a role, as does this week’s work. I was asked why not make the change earlier after the game. I think it’s fair. Along the same lines, I think some of the positions we (Raiola) played weren’t successful opportunities either,” Lanning said. “I think we made some adjustments to get the ball out a little quicker, creating more open frames that allowed Brock to do that.
“But you have to be able to protect the ball, that’s part of it, and like I said after the game, Dylan is also a guy who played very well against USC and you have to be aware of that as well.”
Lanning knows it’s a tricky situation and he’s naturally trying to protect Raiola because there’s a world in which the Ducks need him at center and playing with confidence again at some point this season. That said, noting that the quarterback’s No. 1 job is protecting the football seems to indicate that Thomas has the edge heading into this week of practice.
On top of that, Lanning admitted there could be a change in who calls plays on Saturday, but revealed no plans beyond that the game planning effort will be more collaborative. Lanning insisted he still has faith in struggling first-year offensive coordinator Drew Mehringer and the rest of his staff, but he hinted it’s possible someone else gets the play sheet Saturday — he just won’t reveal who.
Player decision-making can also play a role in quarterback competition, as a more collaborative game plan will require everyone to be on the same page as to which quarterback takes the snaps and how it fits what he wants to do.
The added intrigue here is that Nebraska knows Raiola better than anyone, having had him as a starter for the Huskers the past two seasons. Given Lanning’s desire to keep Nebraska challenged with who and what to prepare for, that could play a role in Oregon’s quarterback choice on Saturday.
At 3-2, Lanning seems to recognize that the season is one more loss for the Ducks. A three-loss Oregon falls short of the College Football Playoff, which means every week from here on out is a must-win situation for the Ducks.
Gn sports
