Why Oregon can/can't make a run with Dylan Raiola at QB if Dante Moore misses significant time
· Yahoo Sports
Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images
Why Oregon can/can't make a run with Dylan Raiola at QB if Dante Moore misses significant time appeared first on ClutchPoints. Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Oregon football looked like the team fans expected to see before the season in Week 4’s big road win over the USC Trojans, which included a clutch drive by backup QB Dylan Raiola. Tempers flared after the game as a scuffle broke out in the tunnel between Ducks and Trojans players.
Visit syntagm.co.za for more information.
The Ducks are now 3-1 following their 41-27 win over the Trojans but must wrestle with the impacts of starting quarterback Dante Moore’s scary injury that might keep him out for the foreseeable future.
If Moore misses time, the Ducks will move forward with Raiola, the former five-star prospect and Nebraska Cornhuskers star, as their main man from here on out. Raiola is a fan of Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes and plays like him at times, but his potential opportunity with coach Dan Lanning’s Ducks would give him a chance to carve his own legacy on a loaded team. Oregon has a chance to make a deep run to the College Football Playoff with Raiola, and there are several reasons why.
Watch sports LIVE with fuboTV (free trial)
Oregon is getting healthier
Oregon’s Week 2 road loss to Oregon State came amid a rash of injuries to skill position players that left them unable to keep up on the scoreboard. The Cowboys won 39-31, but coach Lanning and his staff made adjustments afterward.
The Ducks now have a chance to show the world what they can do with Raiola at the controls of offensive coordinator Drew Mehringer’s unit, and so far the early returns are excellent. The Ducks running game looked strong with 66 rushing yards and a touchdown from Jordon Davison against USC football. In the passing game, the Ducks got seven receptions for 119 yards from Jamari Johnson as Raiola put his stamp on the team in relief of Moore.
Coaches getting acclimated
Mehringer is in his first season as Ducks offensive coordinator and inherited a unit with tons of potential and depth that needed sorting. It takes time for players to adjust to new coordinators and Mehringer is no different, even though he’s been in Eugene since January 2022, when he served as tight ends coach. As Mehringer continues to learn how to use the team’s full complement of players, including its tight ends, the offense will continue to grow.
On defense, a similar learning process has played out as coordinator Chris Hampton still hasn’t gotten a full season in with the Ducks since his promotion in December 2025. The Ducks’ defense was caught flat-footed through their game at Oklahoma State, but Hampton adjusted and called an exquisite game against the Trojans in Los Angeles.
The Ducks get UCLA at home in Week 6, another chance for Hampton to show how far his unit has come.
Raiola is a top tier talent
A team replacing a Heisman Trophy candidate with a backup like Raiola who came into college football as a five-star prospect and has starting experience with another power conference team is virtually unheard of, but that’s where Oregon now finds itself.
Raiola had 2,189 and 2,000 yards in his first two seasons with the Cornhuskers and headed to Oregon for a chance to make a run at a national title, something he didn’t feel was possible in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Raiola is now a seasoned veteran and surrounded by teammates who are among the best in the Big Ten, and in the country, at their respective positions. The Ducks’ schedule is tough, but nothing Lanning and company can’t handle. Raiola’s playing style also lends itself well to Mehringer’s wide-open attack, as he excels at throwing on the run, misdirection plays and hitting receivers with passes in stride.
The Ducks are bona fide national title contenders again, and it starts with the quarterback position. Whether Moore comes back and is back up to his old tricks again soon or Raiola carries the torch going forward, Oregon looks to be in good hands for the rest of the 2026 season.
Related: USC fans call for Lincoln Riley’s job after brutal loss to Oregon
Related: Oregon HC Dan Lanning makes targeting feelings clear on Dante Moore hit