The Big Ten is back on top of the preseason board.
For the second straight year, CBS Sports’ preseason college football awards are headed almost entirely through that league, with Oregon quarterback Dante Moore, Ducks coach Dan Lanning and Michigan running back Savion Hiter taking the spotlight for 2026. It’s a reminder that the conference keeps stacking elite talent, from proven stars to newcomers who could be household names by November.
The preseason picks don’t always hold up once the games start. Last year’s winners were Jeremiah Smith, James Franklin and Bryce Underwood, but the regular-season honors ended up going to Diego Pavia, Curt Cignetti and Malachi Toney. That kind of swing is part of the fun - and part of the risk - of these awards.
Still, Oregon’s Moore is the headliner this time.
Dante Moore named Player of the Year
Moore had the kind of season that puts a quarterback on every big-stage watch list, and he’s coming back with unfinished business. He could have been a top-five pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, but instead passed on nearly $50 million in guaranteed money to return to Eugene for one more year.
As a starter, he already showed why the hype is real. Moore finished in the top 10 nationally in completion percentage at 71.8%, touchdowns with 30 and passer rating at 163.72. Even with that production, the final memory from Oregon’s season was the rough one: a 56-22 loss to Indiana in the CFP semifinals.
The pieces around him are strong. Three of Oregon’s top five pass catchers are back, and Evan Stewart is set to return after missing all of 2025 with a knee injury. The Ducks also bring back an experienced defensive group that should help keep Moore in favorable situations.
There is one change to watch on offense, with Will Stein now leading Kentucky. But Drew Mehringer has been with Dan Lanning since Day 1 in Eugene, and the offense still belongs to Moore.
Bo Nix and Dillon Gabriel both reached the Heisman Trophy finalist stage in their final Oregon seasons. Moore has the look of the next Duck who can get to New York, and maybe the next one to bring home the trophy since Marcus Mariota in 2014.
Dan Lanning gets Coach of the Year nod
Lanning’s name comes with the kind of expectations that follow a program living at the top of the sport. Oregon has been knocked out of the College Football Playoff by the eventual national champion in each of the last two seasons, and neither game was close. The Ducks have reached the doorstep, but not the finish line.
That’s the next step for Lanning.
Since taking over in 2022, he has built Oregon into one of the best programs in the country. The Ducks are tied with Ohio State for the second-best record nationally over that span, with only Georgia ahead. It’s the kind of run that invites comparisons to what Ryan Day and Kirby Smart dealt with early in their own tenures: plenty of winning, plenty of questions about whether the biggest prize would follow.
Oregon enters 2026 ranked No. 2 in the Preseason AP Top 25, and the setup is there for another serious push. Moore is back at quarterback, the roster is loaded, and the Ducks have enough talent to chase the first national championship in school history.
Savion Hiter earns Freshman of the Year
Michigan makes it back-to-back years with the preseason freshman honor, and this one goes to Hiter. He joins Bryce Underwood, last season’s CBS Sports Preseason Freshman of the Year, in a Wolverines offense that could look different under new coordinator Jason Beck.
That change may actually work in Hiter’s favor.
The five-star back arrived as the No. 21 overall prospect in the 2026 recruiting class, and the tools are obvious: burst, power, agility, balance and vision. Michigan won’t need him to do everything, but it should have plenty of ways to get him involved.
Jordan Marshall is also in the backfield, and Underwood is expected to take his share of carries too. Even so, there’s room for Hiter to carve out a real role and establish himself as the lead back.
Beck’s track record at Utah makes the fit even more intriguing. In 2025, his offense ranked second nationally in rushing yards per game at 266.31, eighth in rushing attempts per game at 44.23 and fourth in rushing success rate at 50.1%. That is a lot of ground-game volume, and Hiter has the kind of talent that can turn it into production quickly.
If Beck’s approach translates to Ann Arbor, Hiter could become one of the most productive freshmen in the country almost immediately.
In Other News...
Oregons Crowded WR Room Comes With One Surprising Early Snub
The preseason Biletnikoff Award watch list offered an early look at how Oregons receiver room is being viewed nationally, and it provided a reminder of just how deep the Ducks are at the position. Iverson Hooks and Jamari Johnson landed on the list, giving Oregon a pair of early standouts on a group that already has plenty of intrigue heading toward the 2026 season.
What stood out just as much was who did not make the cut. Evan Stewart, Dakorien Moore and Jeremiah McClellan were left off the list even though all three have been expected to be central to Oregons passing game next season. For a receiver group this crowded, the watch list only sharpened the conversation around how much production is available, and how quickly the Ducks could sort out their pecking order once the games begin. [Read more 🡒]
Dan Lanning Still Has One Big Oregon QB Decision To Make
Fall camp has given Oregon a clear picture at the top of the quarterback depth chart with Dante Moore entrenched as the starter, but the work is far from finished behind him. Dan Lanning and quarterbacks coach Koa Ka'ai are still sorting through a crowded room of six passers as the Ducks try to settle on the backup order, a job made trickier by the mix of experience, talent and different stages of development in the room.
The staff has been evaluating the backup candidates on consistency, arm strength and command of the offense, and it has made clear the competition is still open. Nebraska transfer Dylan Raiola, fifth-year senior Brock Thomas and sophomore Akili Smith Jr. are all in the mix as Oregon keeps watching how each quarterback handles the daily grind of camp, with no official decision yet and no sign the evaluation is close to being over. [Read more 🡒]
Dan Lanning Is Fighting Oregon's Biggest Problem Before Week 1
With Oregon carrying a lofty preseason ranking into Week 1, Dan Lanning is trying to keep the Ducks from getting pulled into the noise that comes with national attention. At practice and in conversations with players, the message has been clear: the hype is nice, but it cannot become the story. Quarterback Dante Moore and edge rusher Matayo Uiagalelei were among the Ducks who talked about the challenge of handling expectations without letting them change the way the team prepares.
Lanning has stressed staying locked in and avoiding complacency, a familiar concern for any team that starts a season with real playoff ambitions. The players have their own ways of managing it, too, including limiting time on social media so the outside conversation does not spill into their focus or mental health. For Oregon, the bigger question is not whether it has earned the ranking, but whether it can keep that ranking from becoming a distraction once the games start. [Read more 🡒]