Oregon QB Dante Moore: “My separation will be my preparation.”

Oregon quarterback Dante Moore met with media after practice on Wednesday. The favorite to be the starting quarterback was asked about a number of topics including the offense, his growth and more.

Here are most of his top comments with the video included at the bottom.

On Veteran Center Iapani Laloulu (Poncho):

“Yeah, Poncho is a phenomenal teammate. First thing that’s of course, that stands out to me is big, he’s big into his faith. Of course he has, of course, you know, a believer he looks up to, you know, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He, you know, prays every day, always takes me in and prays with me. So for him, just understand his faith, I feel like that’s every day. He always takes me in and prays with me. So for him, just understanding his faith, I feel like that’s the biggest part of me and I can trust and believe in him. Of course, Poncho, of course, has played three years.

He knows how to communicate very well. With the new O-line coming in, of course, you need your center to know how to communicate well. And Poncho’s been doing it for three years now. So with him making great calls, with him seeing certain pressures and even this team here, like, you know, our practice, Coach Tosh and everybody, they bring great pressures.

So it’s kind of hard for me to sometimes see them. But Poncho’s been here, been, you know, been, you know, a veteran. He knows how to communicate, make sure we’re going on the same page. So having Poncho as a center is a great, great, you know, great for the team for sure.”

On Making Pre-Snap Checks: (Playing Chess)

“Yeah, I like how you brought up chess. Of course, football game is chess, literally. Of course, you want to make the, of course, the best move. And, you know, in understanding Coach Stein, of course, we meet a lot here. We have a lot of meetings and when there’s certain, you know, cover fronts, certain coverages, we want to check until, you know, a better play.

And Coach Stein just has been, you know, preaching, you know, the right checks. And of course, as a quarterback, when you’re in the meetings and take it out to the football field and you make, you know, a better play. And Coach Stein just has been, you know, preaching, you know, the right checks.

And, of course, as a quarterback, when you’re in the meetings and take it out to the football field and you make, you know, a worse play into a better play, of course, you know, makes the coaches believe in that quarterback and be like, hey, this guy’s been learning. This guy’s been taking his coaching. So when you make a great check, of course, it feels great, especially if it’s a pass, check into a run, and the run gashes down the middle.”

Evaluating Self on Fall Camp:

“Yeah, it’s crazy. I was talking to Akili (Smith Jr.) coming up. I’m like, next time you look up, you’re going to be going to your third fall camp, and it’s kind of my third fall camp right now. It’s just crazy how time flies, you know. It’s been a great journey, of course, and this camp, of course, has been my best camp. Spring ball here, of course, this year was great as well. I’m really close with the team, but this fall camp, of course, has been my best camp. Spring ball here, of course, this year was great as well.

You know, I’m really close with the team, but this fall camp, especially during the hot days when we’re all pushing with each other and understanding that we have to connect with each other really well, has, of course, been really good. I’ve been playing pretty well, but I feel like the best thing for me is being a leader, communicating with the team really well.

Of course, plays are going to be played, and they’re going to make our plays, whatever, regardless. But I feel like my communication has been well with the team, and it’s been great, so I’m excited. “

On QB Lineage at Oregon:

“Yeah, of course I see all the great stuff played here, but I never want to look at their success. I always want to worry about myself and understand that I can, of course, see their recipe and their resume and learn from them.

But when I feel like I start looking at other people’s success, I kind of look at myself and think, like, hey, if I have a bad day, I will never be as great as them. I don’t want to ever have that mindset. So every day when I take the field, I’m thinking to myself, how can I get better? And, of course, Dillon’s, you know, is in the NFL, Bo’s in the NFL, Justin Herbert in the NFL, like all these great quarterbacks.

And they have done really great things, but I feel like I have to find and master my craft so I can be with them in the NFL and hope one day play against them.”

On his Children’s Book:

“Yeah. There’s many people that, of course, came to me and they’re very successful in life and talked to me one-on-one. They came back to my high school and talked to the team.

I feel like something that would have been great for me to give back to my city, especially around the world, is just there’s many kids that look up to us. Many kids look at us like superheroes. And I know as a kid I would love to have a book to read about football. Of course, it’s not very lengthy where there’s more pictures and, of course, simple to read.

But I feel like it was something good to give back. And, of course, I could have just, you know, went back home and talked to classrooms or teams. But I feel like if you have a book and you can keep it in your room on your shelf and every time you wake up, you see it, you can read it with your family. I mean, something I wanted to do, of course, and thanks to my team that helped me put it together. But I feel like having a book was a great thing for me, and it’s been going pretty good.”

On the WR Room:

“Yeah, I feel like the best part is that, you know, they’re unexperienced, of course, and can hurt you. But I feel like it’s actually a great thing for us because we have to rely on each other more. Of course, there’s not many people except for Evan (Stewart) if he was healthy to play.

And, you know, everybody looks up to him, but everybody has to lean on each other. We have to communicate well. We’re in the huddle. We have to communicate we’re on the field. And when it comes to talent, talent’s out the roof. I mean, you got, you know, great receivers everywhere. But, of course, we have the Gary Bryant’s, the Malik Benson that have been in college for a little while.

But everybody, of course, has a chip on their shoulder, and I feel like that’s going to be a fuel for us to attack this year.”