Dante Moore (born May 24, 2005) is an American college football quarterback who plays for the Oregon Ducks. He previously played for the UCLA Bruins.

Dante Moore
Moore in 2024
Oregon Ducks – No. 5
PositionQuarterback
ClassSophomore
Personal information
Born: (2005-05-24) May 24, 2005 (age 19)[1]
East Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.[2]
Height6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight210 lb (95 kg)
Career history
College
High schoolMartin Luther King (Detroit, Michigan)
Career highlights and awards

Early life and high school

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Moore was born in East Cleveland, Ohio and grew up in nearby Elyria. He later moved to Detroit, Michigan and attended Martin Luther King High School (MLK).[3] He weighed 155 pounds (70 kg) as a freshman and gained 50 pounds over the next two seasons.[4] Moore passed for 3,044 yards with 40 touchdowns against three interceptions during his junior season while MLK won the Division III state championship.[5] Moore led MLK to a second straight state title as a senior while passing for 2,392 yards and 32 touchdowns with three interceptions.[6][7] He was selected to play in the 2023 All-American Bowl.[8] Moore finished his high school career with 9,880 passing yards and 135 touchdown passes.[9]

Moore was rated the best recruit in his class by Sports Illustrated.[10] He initially committed to play college football at Oregon entering his senior year.[11] Moore had the option to meet with Oregon's name, image and likeness (NIL) collectives during his official visit, but opted against doing so.[12] Moore flipped his commitment to UCLA.[13] He is the highest-rated quarterback to ever commit to play for the Bruins.[14] Moore signed his National Letter of Intent to UCLA on December 21, 2022.[15]

College career

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UCLA

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Moore joined the UCLA Bruins as an early enrollee in January 2023.[16] He was trying to become the Bruins' first true freshman to start the season opener at quarterback since Josh Rosen in 2015. However, UCLA coach Chip Kelly named junior Ethan Garbers the starter, while also saying that Moore and transfer quarterback Collin Schlee would also play in the opener.[17] The Bruins won their season opener 27–13 over Coastal Carolina. Moore completed seven of 12 passes for two touchdowns and an interception. Playing in five drives, he led the Bruins to 212 yards on 31 plays for 20 points.[18] Moore started the following week in a 35–10 win against San Diego State. He was 17-of-27 passing for 290 yards in only three quarters, and his three touchdown passes tied the school record for a true freshman held by Rosen and Cade McNown.[19] He barely played the next week, a blowout win over North Carolina Central.[20]

In the following game against Utah, Moore's first pass was intercepted for a touchdown. He was pressured by the Utes, sacked seven times and losing a fumble in a 14–7 loss. The game started a streak of three straight games in which he threw a pick-six, resulting in Kelly returning to Garbers as the starter. Moore played in most of the regular-season finale against California after Garbers left with an arm injury in UCLA's opening drive.[20] In his first play from Cal's 20-yard line, Moore threw into heavy coverage for an interception in the end zone. The Bruins lost 33–7, with Moore completing 23 of 38 passes for 266 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. He lost a fumble and was sacked six times.[21] Moore entered the transfer portal on November 30, 2023.[22]

Oregon

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On December 18, 2023, Moore announced that he would be transferring to Oregon.[23]

College statistics

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Season Games Passing Rushing
GP GS Record Cmp Att Pct Yds Avg TD Int Rtg Att Yds Avg TD
UCLA Bruins
2023 9 5 3−2 114 213 53.5 1,610 7.6 11 9 125.6 45 -84 -1.9 0
Oregon Ducks
2024 1 0 0–0 0 0 0.0 22 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0
Career 10 5 3−2 114 213 53.5 1,632 7.6 11 9 125.6 45 -84 -1.9 0

References

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  1. ^ Moore, Dante [@dantemoore05] (May 24, 2022). "Blessed to see another year! #17" (Tweet). Archived from the original on May 24, 2022. Retrieved January 15, 2023 – via Twitter.
  2. ^ Gay, Colin (April 9, 2022). "DottingTheEyes - Ohio State remains in the race for 2023 five-star QB Dante Moore". Rivals.com. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  3. ^ Wasserman, Ari (June 29, 2022). "Inside Dante Moore's head and why he doesn't want you to assume anything". The Athletic. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  4. ^ "Detroit News top player: King QB Dante Moore poised to cap 'great ride' with another title". Detroit News. August 25, 2022. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
  5. ^ "Detroit King using culture, Dante Moore for deep run". Detroit Free Press. August 9, 2022. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  6. ^ Purcell, Jared (November 27, 2022). "Dante Moore ends high school career in glorious fashion as Detroit King football wins D3 state title again". MLive.com. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
  7. ^ "Detroit King QB Moore named top player in Division 3-4". The Macomb Daily. Associated Press. December 9, 2022. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
  8. ^ Trieu, Allen (October 19, 2022). "Five-star QB Dante Moore receives All-American Bowl jersey". 247Sports.com. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
  9. ^ Sallee, Barrett (December 19, 2022). "UCLA football recruiting: Five-star QB Dante Moore flips from Oregon days before early signing period". CBS Sports. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
  10. ^ Garcia Jr., John (August 8, 2022). "QB Dante Moore Named No. 1 College Football Recruit by SI All-American". SI.com. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  11. ^ VanHaaren, Tom (July 8, 2022). "Oregon Ducks get commitment from QB Dante Moore, No. 8 college football recruit for 2023". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  12. ^ Purcell, Jared (July 8, 2022). "New Oregon QB commit Dante Moore declined NIL meetings, focused on other things in recruitment". OregonLive.com. Retrieved October 11, 2022.
  13. ^ Thamel, Pete (December 19, 2022). "Touted QB prospect Dante Moore flips from Oregon to UCLA". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
  14. ^ Bolch, Ben (December 19, 2022). "Dante Moore: UCLA lands commitment from its highest-rated QB ever". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
  15. ^ UCLA Football [@UCLAFootball] (December 21, 2022). "B1G ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Signing! Welcome Home @dantemoore05! #GoBruins | #NSD23 https://t.co/KSJJ5etq8A" (Tweet). Archived from the original on December 21, 2022. Retrieved January 15, 2023 – via Twitter.
  16. ^ Pierson, Tracy (January 11, 2023). "UCLA Welcomes Transfers and Early Entrants". 247Sports.com. Retrieved May 8, 2023.
  17. ^ Bolch, Ben (August 28, 2023). "Chip Kelly names Ethan Garbers UCLA's starting quarterback, but adds others will play". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  18. ^ Bolch, Ben (September 4, 2023). "Dante Moore makes his points in UCLA's opener as quarterback battle drags on". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  19. ^ Bolch, Ben (September 9, 2023). "UCLA's Dante Moore proves he's worthy No. 1 QB, but Chip Kelly won't commit". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  20. ^ a b Bolch, Ben (November 30, 2023). "UCLA's Dante Moore reportedly will enter transfer portal after bumpy freshman season". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  21. ^ Bolch, Ben (November 26, 2023). "Chip Kelly says he isn't focused on his job security after UCLA's lopsided loss to Cal". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 19, 2023.
  22. ^ "2024 College Football Transfer Portal". 247Sports. August 28, 2024. Retrieved November 1, 2024.
  23. ^ Morrison, Dan (December 18, 2023). "UCLA quarterback transfer Dante Moore commits to Oregon". On3.com. Retrieved December 18, 2023.
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