Speculation has been rampant about whether Oregon Ducks quarterback Dante Moore will declare for the 2026 NFL Draft or return to Eugene for his second season as the team's starter.
Though he's a redshirt sophomore and has started just 17 games in his career prior to the 2025 College Football Playoff, many draft experts have Moore ranked within the top ten. Longtime ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. even put him at No. 1 on his latest Big Board, showing the immense talent and translatable skills that the Ducks passer has displayed in his lone season as the starter.
Following Monday morning's practice, Moore was about his pending decision.
"There's not a decision yet," he said. "I don't know."
It seemed like roughly a month ago that it was a forgone conclusion that Moore would return to Oregon for his redshirt junior season. At that point, he'd had three subpar performances in four games, tossing just one touchdown to three interceptions combined in games against the Indiana Hoosiers , Wisconsin Badgers and Iowa Hawkeyes .
His lack of starts at the college level, which were certainly not aided by extremely tough weather conditions against Wisconsin and Iowa , led to the assumption by many that he simply needed to come back to college to hone his skills for one more season.
But then Moore pieced together three straight games of 250-plus passing yards to finish the regular-season, a first in his career and arguably the best stretch of football that he's ever played. He threw five touchdowns to just one interception with a rushing score in those three must-win games for the Ducks , impressing scouts and analysts alike.
With an opportunity to continue his excellent play in the College Football Playoff and potentially supplant himself as the bonafide top prospect, the door appears to be sliding open ever so slightly for Moore to leave Eugene and go pro.
On Monday, Moore didn't denounce those rumors. But, nor did he denounce rumors of him coming back, as it appears that both the college football and NFL audiences will have to wait until he makes an official decision once the Ducks' season comes to a close.
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This article originally appeared on Ducks Wire: Ducks QB Dante Moore speaks on pending NFL decision, still unsure
