Dan Lanning Forced to Address Oregon’s Biggest Flaw After Concerning Dante Moore Revelation

Oregon Ducks’ spring practice this year is an entirely new epoch, and Oregon fans can feel the buzz in Eugene. With many of last season’s key performers, including stars Dillon Gabriel, Jordan James, and Terrance Ferguson, heading to the NFL, the team has nearly completely overhauled this year’s roster. This shift has turned spring ball into an exciting showcase for emerging talent. The quarterback battle has been the biggest topic, and Dante Moore impressed with his arm and accuracy, but there is plenty of competition remaining, and nothing’s finalized yet.

The Ducks’ 2024 campaign concluded on a bitter note with a 41-21 defeat at the hands of Ohio State in the Rose Bowl, also a College Football Playoff quarterfinal. Having gone on an unbelievable 13-0 streak and clinched the Big Ten in their inaugural season in the conference, the Ducks’ defense exhibited some glaring shortcomings ruthlessly capitalized upon by Ohio State. Oregon’s defense, coordinated by Tosh Lupoi, struggled to contain the Buckeyes’ high-powered offense. Coach Dan Lanning and fans alike were left frustrated.

During a press conference, reporters asked Lanning about the 2025 spring game, inquiring whether his dominant defense had consistently outperformed the offensive line, which had remained intact throughout the spring, or if that dominance was merely a one-day phenomenon. Lanning answered, “I wouldn’t say that. No, there’s been some really good back and forth throughout the spring. Nice shot though.”

The Ducks’ defense in this spring game was worlds different from last year—it was way more aggressive and made a statement, amassing 11 sacks, creating turnovers, and even scoring a defensive touchdown. After the game, Dan Lanning emphasized that this is not just a one-game adjustment for the spring. He has modified the defensive calls and style to leverage the strengths of this new unit.

Reporters asked Dan about his top defense priorities post-season and in spring, focusing on areas for improvement and their overall growth characterization. Lanning is all set to implement changes to ensure the Ducks’ defense becomes more than just a one-time spectacle; they want it to be a blockbuster throughout the entire season. He says, “Assessing this group as an individual group has nothing really to do with last season, right? And there are areas of growth, and there’s a lot of stuff that we put in and did differently that we didn’t show you today, right, it’s not that we’re not trying to win the uh scrimmage, right, we’re out there trying to see our guys play football.”

Coach Dan Lanning said it’s a whole different unit now, so they’re still trying to determine what they can do and how to tailor schemes to the new personnel. The defense was dominant in the spring game, collecting 11 sacks and forcing turnovers, which revealed some serious pass-rush depth and playmaking talent. However, Lanning also cited some obvious deficiencies, particularly in tackling, which wasn’t as effective as it has to be because they don’t do a lot of live tackling during spring drills.

Dan Lanning’s tough love

Dan Lanning, typically Mr. Positive Vibes, drops a small, carefully crafted grenade into the Dante Moore hype train following spring practice. The bombshell? Our five-star quarterback, the kid who was going to stroll in and take over the offense like he owns the joint, may…gasp…require some coaching!

Dante, having admitted to committing a few “errors” last spring. Now, I’m not a football genius or anything, but I’m fairly certain quarterbacks, particularly young ones, are bound by contract to make errors. It’s the learning process, right? But what Lanning said made it sound like Dante had just come clean about filling the Gatorade with pickle juice or something equally egregious. Lanning, in his wisdom, indicated that Dante must improve his decision-making.

Dan Lanning’s small “red flag” regarding Dante Moore isn’t the apocalypse’s just a reality check. Every young QB must endure this sloppy learning process, and Dante is no exception. It’s actually kind of refreshing to see the coach being real rather than jacking things up unrealistically. Sure, Dante’s got some growing pains coming his way, but that’s part of the process.