The Oregon Ducks are heading back on the road with their offense still under a cloud of injuries, and the latest Big Ten availability report only sharpened the concern.
After rallying past Nebraska 17-14 at Autzen Stadium, Oregon (4-2 overall, 2-1 Big Ten) now turns to Saturday’s matchup with Illinois in Champaign without several key pieces. Dante Moore will miss a third straight game with a concussion, while receivers Jeremiah McClellan, Evan Stewart, Jalen Lott and Messiah Hampton are all listed out as well. That leaves the Ducks thinner than they’ve been all season at the skill positions.
The quarterback situation is just as unsettled. Oregon is set to start Dylan Raiola for the second time since his injury, and the Ducks are hoping for a cleaner, steadier performance from the position after Raiola and third-string Brock Thomas both struggled in their recent starts. Those issues have fed into Oregon’s recent offensive slump, and now the Ducks have to navigate another game without one of their top players under center.
Moore’s absence has become familiar since he suffered the concussion in Oregon’s 41-27 win over No. 16 USC on Sept. 26 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The Ducks have already spent plenty of time adjusting around injuries on offense, and that challenge only deepened with Stewart unavailable against Nebraska and Hampton and Lott now added to the list.
That leaves Raiola with fewer familiar targets against Illinois, with Dakorien Moore and tight end Jamari Johnson likely carrying a larger load. Lanning has been upfront about the strain injuries put on the offense, especially when it comes to balancing what the Ducks can install and how much they can realistically execute at a high level.
“So, you got to make sure that guys have enough reps at certain positions, and it’s that balance of carrying volume that has answers, right? Versus what can you execute at a really high level well,” Lanning said.
Oregon’s injury list also includes Aaron Flowers, Brayden Platt, Matthew Johnson, Trent Ferguson, Kawika Rogers and Immanuel Iheanacho, while McClellan remains out after breaking his foot in the 84-0 win over Portland State on Sept. 18.
The Ducks have leaned on younger players to fill the gaps, with Messiah Hampton emerging as one of the underclassmen who stepped up before his injury. Now, with Hampton and Lott unavailable too, the burden shifts even more heavily elsewhere. Lanning said the group has benefited from having to adapt in past stretches, including last season’s CFP run.
“Yeah, it’s beneficial,” Lanning said. “It’s been beneficial for us too because it’s looked different for the guys that we’ve had out there, and we’ve talked about it before, where if we need to be an 11-personnel team, we’ll be an 11-personnel team," Lanning said.
“If we need to be a 12-team, we’ll be a 12-team; a 21-team, so we can change, we can adapt, right? Where that can become more of a challenge is as coaches. All right, we call it this formation when we want this guy here.”
“We call it this formation; we want this guy here, and then how much parity, and how do you practice that well based on what happens within the sequence of a game, or an injury might happen, right? We’ve had injuries in pregame this year, where that totally kind of changes what you prepared for and how you plan it,” Lanning continued.
Oregon and Illinois last met at Autzen Stadium on Oct. 26, 2024, when the Ducks rolled to a 38-9 win in a top-25 game on the way to an undefeated regular season. This time, Oregon will try to recreate that result without Moore available. The Ducks enter the matchup as a ten-point favorite, according to DraftKings Sportsbook betting odds.
Kickoff is set for 12 p.m. PT at Gies Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois, and the game will air on the Big Ten Network.
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