Dante Moore’s arm strength was the talk of the town, but his mobility saw another boost during the spring drills, landing at 21.5 mph. With 10 days before the Kickoff, Oregon’s new QB1 is stepping with renewed confidence. But a quarterback can only do so much without his safety blanket. And for Moore, the lack of proven support around him is just as pressing as his own development.

With a 12-0 regular season and the Big Ten Championship cup, no doubt last season was great for the Ducks. But Dan Lanning saw 10 players leave for the NFL draft. The roster is stacked up with elite talent for sure, but the inexperience raises concerns, especially in the WR room. Tez Johnson is gone, Holden won’t be easy to replace, and top returner Evan Stewart is sidelined with injury. To make matters worse, Jurrion Dickey, whose availability could have provided stability, is also suspended from the team. No doubt Dakorien Moore, Jeremiah McClellan are ‘all game-changers, ‘ as Zachary Neel of Duck’s Wire put it, but Stewart’s injury has reignited the discussion about Lanning’s inexperienced WR room.

Even Dante Moore addressed that concern during the press conference on GoDucks. “There’s a lot of inexperience at the receiver room, but certainly a ton of talent. What defines that group? What excites you about that group and just their development?” One reporter prompted that question towards Moore. “Yeah. I feel like the best part is that, you know, they’re inexperienced, of course, and can hurt you, but I feel like it’s actually a great thing for us,” Dante Moore said. “Because we have to rely on each other more. Of course, there’s not many people except for Evan if he was healthy to play.”

Stewart was a significant weapon on Dan Lanning’s roster last season. Despite missing the last two games, he tallied 48 receptions, five touchdowns, and 613 receiving yards. His performance, especially against the National Championship winner, the Ohio State Buckeyes at Autzen Stadium, grabbed eyeballs. He caught seven catches for a career-high 149 yards and one touchdown in a tight 32-31 win.

Dante Moore continued. “You know, everybody looks up to him, but everybody has to lean on each other. We have to communicate well. We’re in the huddle. We have to communicate on the field. And when it comes to talent, talent’s out the roof.” Moore knows that though the stacked WR room is inexperienced, they are brimming with talent. “I mean, you got, you know, great receivers everywhere, but of course, we have the Gary Bryant, Malik Benson that have been in college for a little while, but everybody, of course, has a chip on their shoulder, and I feel like that’s going to be fuel for us to attack this year,” he added. With such uncertainty in the WR room, can they maintain their conference dominance this season as well?

Evan Stewart’s injury and the WR conundrum at Eugene

Evan Stewart was projected to be the No. 1 WR going into the 2025 season. He was set to lead the WR room, but the plans collapsed as a knee injury, a torn patellar tendon, put a hold on his plans. Back in July, Zachary Neel prompted the possibility of Stewart taking a medical redshirt this season, instead of heading back to the turf. “We will continue to monitor the recovery timeline, but it seems more likely than not that Stewart will take a medical redshirt this season,” he said.

The concern is pretty evident. College Football Show’s Josh Pate took a tour of the preseason camp at Eugene and expressed unease regarding the WR room’s depth and versatility. “I’m in a weird position with Oregon,” Pate said.”I think that’s the best collection of talent that Lanning has had since he’s been there. But there are some hinge points that are going to determine if they are capable of competing for the Big Ten championship this year. My question is if the wide receiver room has the depth and versatility it needs to.”

Yes, he believes that Dan Lanning’s roster is brimming with potential talent, but the inexperience factor looms large. Freshman Dakorien Moore and Florida State transfer Malik Benson have shown flashes of talent, but can the merit alone make up for the inexperience?
“It hurts my soul understanding how E-Stew went down and him not being here,” expressed quarterback Dante Moore, speaking at Oregon’s 2025 media day. Will the inexperience cost them dearly? Let’s see how Dan Lanning and Dante Moore fare this 2025 season.