A little more Dylan Raiola love this Monday morning.

Raiola Fits This Oregon Offense

Dylan Raiola is the type of quarterback needed to run Dan Lanning’s efficiency based offense.

Edited 9 hours ago9 hr by David Marsh

A national championship may be at stake. I think the world of Dante Moore....he is a real gentleman......but.....as a QB.....Dylan is the better choice for the Ducks.

IMHO How this plays out may determine Oregon's future this year.

I'am glad I'am not making the decision....it's a tough call from a human point of view. It could be heart breaking either way.

I hear you but I just don’t see Coach Lanning not riding with Dante Moore the rest of the season, given what he gave up to come back to Oregon and how he was injured. It’s not like he hasn’t been playing well and is the reason for Oregon’s struggles (see offensive line and the defense, which was supposed to be one of the best in Oregon’s history).

What would the implications be for future players deciding whether to forego the NFL draft to come back to Oregon?

That said, I believe that Dylan Raiola has earned some playing time and would love to see him used situationally, as I believe he is more mobile than Dante Moore and could be used for some wrinkles in key situations.

Edited 6 hours ago6 hr by OregonDucks

I have never doubted how much Lanning cares for the well-being of his team. What I want to know is if he can be shrewd enough to make decisions based on what he thinks is best to attain the outcome he has set his sights on. I need to see more of Raiola in order to say whether or not he needs to be the guy going forward. But that's exactly what we may get when we host UCLA in two weeks.

The Bruins are not a slouch and frankly look more dangerous than USC. If Raiola produces at a high efficiency then Lanning may truly have a decision to make. Do what's best for team success moving forward? Or roll with Dante because he earned the spot to start the season. I know which way I'd lean on this but then again I don't make University Of Oregon Head Football Coach money.

USC broke Dylan's leg last season. How about coming off the bench and throwing a TD pass on the first play?

👍👌😁😎😍

Great article David.

After that hit, Dante will always be a Duck legend and deserves much love and respect. Raiola on the other hand, has that it factor that I've been saying is lacking with Moore.

There's a reason the offense could never get out of second gear in Stillwater and the first twenty minutes of the game in LA. When every play is either a run or a checkdown pass or some type of screen, the D is always bunched up by the line and several defenders will always be near by to make a play. With the offense having a more and more difficult time moving the ball, they then get even more cautious which just makes things worse.

When the field opens up, defenders get put on islands having to deal with elite play makers one on one in space. Another benefit is that the check down plays become truly dangerous as the D has already been spread out and few defenders are available to stop them. That's why Moore's cautious style stagnates the offense while Raiola looks more like the Duck legends of the past.

Again I hope Dante makes a full recovery and have nothing but appreciation for the guy but if the Ducks want to reach max potential this year then Raiola is the guy.

David, you bring up the unspoken topic. Dylan looked really good. He clearly benefited from the reps he got against PSU. No guarantee that Dante comes back soon. Dan Lanning will probably have a difficult decision in the near future. Another thought. If Dylan Raiola wins the starting role, and plays well, we could lose QB 1 and 2 at the end of this season.

David, great article and I like how you brought up Raiola's pocket presence. He doesn't run to one sideline and cut off half the field. He steps up and does quick steps to the side while looking downfield. Love it!

58 minutes ago, Babyjesus615 said:

The Bruins are not a slouch and frankly look more dangerous than USC.

USC has better athletes (probably more of their roster will go to the NFL) but UCLA is better coached for sure.

In this case the better coached team is the more dangerous.

35 minutes ago, Santa Rosa Duck said:

If Dylan Raiola wins the starting role, and plays well, we could lose QB 1 and 2 at the end of this season.

And if that's the case...

Dan needs to go portal shopping. It's worked for us before so I am less concerned than I used to be about the matter.

27 minutes ago, David Marsh said:

And if that's the case...

Dan needs to go portal shopping. It's worked for us before so I am less concerned than I used to be about the matter.

Get Sagapoleute on line one!

14 minutes ago, Solar said:

Get Sagapoleute on line one!

They could just head up north 40 minutes and poach Braden Atkinson! Kid is a straight baller.

We haven't seen Raiola vs a defense that actually game planned for him. I liked what he showed, but he still has a lot to prove after just one game.

The flip side: we probably haven't seen what happens when he practices with the starters. This will be interesting and I'm looking forward to the next game.

My concern with Dante is that he has not been very composed when the pocket is collapsing around him. Will this injury exacerbate his lack of poise? It certainly won’t help it and he will likely continue to take the safe outlet pass. I’m quite sure he’s done running upfield.

On the other hand, Raiola did well to sling the ball with pressure in his face. On Dakorian Moore’s TD the LT got driven into his lap and he still got the ball off. I have to think Dante bails on that play and throw to a different receiver.

It may not matter. Dante suffered what looked like a pretty significant concussion. The lingering effects can last for weeks, if not months. My guess is four to six weeks at a minimum. DL will likely look out for his future (as he already mentioned) knowing he has a guy like Raiola taking the reins.