No. 13 Oregon ruled out starting quarterback Dante Moore for its Saturday matchup against No. 21 UCLA as he continues to recover from a concussion.
Moore was listed as out on the Ducks’ initial availability report Wednesday night despite returning to practice earlier in the week.
With Moore sidelined, Nebraska transfer Dylan Raiola is expected to make his first start for Oregon.
Moore sustained the concussion during the Ducks’ 41-27 victory over Southern California on Sept. 26 in Los Angeles. He was hit in the head by Trojans linebacker Desman Stephens II while sliding and had to be taken from the field on a stretcher.
Stephens was ejected for targeting and subsequently suspended for USC’s next game after celebrating while Moore received medical attention.
Moore returned to the practice field Monday wearing a helmet and shoulder pads, but coach Dan Lanning stressed that the team would remain cautious.
“We’re gonna continue to make sure we do what’s best for Dante as we move forward,” Lanning said Monday. “It was great to see him back out there with his teammates getting to work today.”
Raiola already demonstrated his readiness while filling in for Moore against USC, completing 19 of 25 passes for 289 yards and two touchdowns without an interception.
Raiola transferred to Oregon during the offseason after two seasons at Nebraska.
Moore has completed 69 of 99 passes for 926 yards and nine touchdowns without an interception through portions of four games this season.
Raiola has passed for 413 yards and five touchdowns with no interceptions in limited action this season. He passed for 2,000 yards with 18 touchdowns and six interceptions in nine games for Nebraska last season.
Oregon (3-1, 1-0 Big Ten) is coming off a bye week heading into a home game against UCLA (4-0, 2-0).
–Field Level Media
