The Oregon Ducks are throwing Brock Thomas into the starting QB role against the Nebraska Cornhuskers on Saturday night, an absolute bombshell that officially benches Dylan Raiola after his brutal outing last week. This is a massive shake-up, and honestly, the Ducks are still reeling from starting QB Dante Moore’s long-term concussion recovery. It feels like they’re just shuffling passers hoping something sticks.
Raiola Benched, Thomas Steps Up Big
Talk about a tough break for Dylan Raiola. He got the start last week against UCLA, but it was a rough one. He went just 6-of-19 for a measly 43 yards, threw two interceptions, and even fumbled the ball away in the loss. Yeah, you read that right. He struggled big time before coach Dan Lanning pulled him for Brock Thomas. The kicker? Raiola won’t even get the chance to face his former team, which has to sting like crazy.
Thomas, on the other hand, came off the bench and gave the Ducks a real jolt of energy. He finished 11-of-15 for 156 yards and tossed a touchdown. He played well enough to give them a shot, but even with his heroics, the Ducks still fell to UCLA after failing to convert a two-point conversion that would’ve forced overtime. So, while Thomas showed some serious promise, the team still couldn’t pull out the win, pushing their record to 3-2 with losses to Oklahoma State and UCLA already on the books. This will be Thomas’s first official start, and he’s got a lot riding on it.
The Lingering Moore Mystery and Lanning’s Secret Plan
The whole QB situation is obviously complicated by Dante Moore’s injury. He went down with a concussion against the USC Trojans nearly a month ago and is still recovering. The dude has cleared concussion protocol and is back on the practice field, which is good news, but he’s simply not ready for game action yet. And let’s not forget, Moore was viewed as one of the top 2027 NFL draft prospects, even turning down the chance to enter the NFL Draft last season to come back to Eugene. Losing that kind of talent for so long has clearly thrown a wrench into Lanning’s plans. There’s still no exact timetable for Moore’s return, leaving a huge question mark over the team.
Coach Lanning is staying tight-lipped about how they’re going to navigate this mess. “There’s going to be some changes, some differences in the way that we operate and what we do, and there already is, the way we’ve operated this week,” Lanning said. “As far as revealing how we’ll do that, what things will look like, I’m not going to share.” So, cryptic as ever, but it’s clear he’s trying to find a spark.
This whole QB carousel is making Oregon’s 3-2 start feel way more precarious than it should. They desperately need to find some consistency under center. Nebraska at Oregon kicks off Saturday night at 11 p.m. ET on FOX. All eyes will be on Brock Thomas to see if he can deliver the stability Oregon needs to turn this season around.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by The Sporting News.
Leave a Reply