College football has waited with bated breath for Oregon quarterback Dante Moore’s decision regarding his future, whether to return for an extra season or declare for the NFL Draft. After the No. 5 Ducks were blown out by the No. 1 Indiana Hoosiers in the Peach Bowl on Friday, Moore revealed that he had not yet made a decision either way.
Several analysts have weighed in on Moore’s much-anticipated decision, with most advising him to stay in college football for an extra season to gain more experience to bolster his 20 total starts.
Dante Moore Receives Career Advice From Urban Meyer
During Monday’s segment of the “Triple Option” podcast, former Ohio State Buckeyes coach Urban Meyer weighed in on the debate and offered strong words of advice to Moore regarding his NFL future.
“I just hope that if he goes somewhere, he can go and sit and learn for a year,” Meyer said.
He added, “I hate when they throw the rookie quarterback in (I did it). You just wish you had some veteran guy like Aaron Rodgers learning from Brett Favre. That was the perfect way for a quarterback to have success.”
Despite Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza edging both encounters against Moore this season, PFSN’s Big Board predicts that the Oregon star will be the first QB off the board during the 2026 NFL Draft.
ESPN Draft Guru Issues Warning to NFL Teams Regarding Moore
During an interview with the “New York Post” on Saturday, ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. weighed in on the Moore issue, reinforcing the points made by Meyer about the New York Jets not throwing the Oregon quarterback in the deep end in the NFL.
“You gotta handle him properly,” Kiper Jr. said. “You’re drafting him based on traits and talent. You can’t have him thrown to the wolves. You gotta get that personnel to where it needs to be, and you gotta get some weapons around him, and you gotta allow him some time to grow into that position.
“I think the more you play in college, the better off you are. They don’t grade on a curve; you’re getting graded as a rookie like you’re an eight-year veteran, so you’ve gotta be ready for that scrutiny, that criticism, all that hate that comes your way. In my opinion, you gotta figure it out at a very high level in college.”
Moore finished the season with 3,565 passing yards, 30 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions, while adding 156 rushing yards and two touchdowns, earning him a PFSN College Quarterback Impact OFFI score of 85.9, ranking him at No. 22 in the country.
