Oregon QB still not ready to play
Big Ten football
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Quarterback Dante Moore returned to practice with No. 13 Oregon this week but he remains in the concussion protocol and won't play on Saturday when the Ducks host UCLA.
Moore sustained the concussion in a late hit by linebacker Desman Stephens during the second quarter of the Ducks' 41-27 victory over Southern California on Sept. 26. Moore was placed on a stretcher and left the game by way of an ambulance.
Oregon backup Dylan Raiola took over and threw for 289 yards and two touchdowns against the Trojans.
Raiola will get the nod again for the Ducks (3-1, 1-0 Big 10) on Saturday against the No. 21 Bruins (4-0, 2-0) at Autzen Stadium.
"He had an expectation when he stepped out there on the field and performed at a really, really high level, and everybody had confidence in him because they see him do it a lot in practice," Oregon coach Dan Lanning said about Raiola. "You get a lot of reps in practice, regardless of where you're sitting."
Raiola transferred to Oregon after starting two seasons at Nebraska, knowing Moore was likely the starter. He has thrown for 413 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions in two appearances this season.
"It's totally different systems than what he was running before, so I think you got to build confidence in the system, and that takes time, especially when you ask the quarterback to do as much as we ask the quarterback to do," Lanning said. "You know, whether it's checks on plays or just the length of a call, right? It's a little bit different. There's a lot of variables in there, and it takes some time to get comfortable with it, even when you're really cerebral and intelligent like Dylan is."