Five star QB Dante Moore has been a topic of conversation for quite some time now. Listed as the number three player in the country by 247 Sports, the Elite 11 finalist is one of the most talented passers in the country. Moore has been committed to Oregon for quite some time, but within the past week or so, UCLA has been picking up a ton of momentum.
Big flips late in the cycle are not uncommon, however, it’s extremely rare to see a QB of his caliber begin to waiver so late. With only 12 commits in the 2023 cycle, a flip like this would be absolutely massive for UCLA. If they can add Dante Moore to the class, that could very well open the door to the possibility of flipping a few more big names.
What Caused Dante Moore’s sudden interest in UCLA?
There have been rumblings that Dante Moore was going to flip from Oregon for quite some time now. It seems as if Moore wants to be the starter from day one, and with the possibility of a return for Bo Nix in Eugene, the writing was on the wall for the Ducks. UCLA QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson will be leaving for the NFL, so the Bruins have an obvious need there. UCLA will be hosting both Clemson QB D.J. Uiagalelei and Kent State QB Collin Schlee this weekend, so if one of those two were to commit, that could drastically change things.
These rumors are further amplified by the fact that Dante Moore was on an official visit with UCLA just recently. Obviously it went extremely well, and Moore left glowing reviews about the experience, even posing with Chip Kelly for a picture.
— Dante MOORE (@dantemoore05) December 12, 2022
Add all that to the fact that Kenny Dillingham, his primary recruiter at Oregon, left for the Arizona State job, and you’ve got a perfect storm brewing in Los Angeles. We should know in the next few days whether he ultimately leaves for greener pastures, as I don’t expect this to drag on all the way to signing day.
What Will Oregon Do if Dante Moore Does Flip?
There aren’t many uncommitted QBs left in the 2023 class. In fact the only one in the top 25 is Marcus Stokes, a former Florida commit who had his offer pulled due to disciplinary issues. Click here to read more about that. That isn’t a guy that Oregon is going to want to go after in my opinion. Compound that with the fact that there’s less than a week left until Early national signing day, it doesn’t look like Oregon will have a QB commit barring a late flip.
The only realistic option they have left is to look to the transfer portal. I would think that D.J. Uiagalelei would be one of their first calls, as it appears that he want to team up with his brother, five-star EDGE Matayo Uiagalelei, and they are both from the west coast. Some other ones to look out for would be Kedon Slovis from Pitt, Brennan Armstrong from Virginia, as well as Collin Schlee from Kent State.
