Oregon isn’t hiding what this season is about. At Big Ten Media Days on Wednesday, Dante Moore put the Ducks’ goals in plain language, and he didn’t soften the edge of it.
“This upcoming year is going to be one where we chase history,” said Oregon quarterback Dante Moore.
That’s not a small statement for a program that is already carrying heavyweight expectations into 2026. The Ducks are chasing their first national championship, and a long playoff run would also push them past their single-season wins mark. Oregon tied its program record with 13 wins in 2024, and getting beyond that total would mean something the school has never done before.
Moore’s own ceiling is just as high. He’s already drawing real Heisman Trophy buzz, and if he wins it, he would become the first Oregon player to take home the award since Marcus Mariota in 2014.
The outside projections match the noise around the program. ESPN’s College Football Power Index gives Oregon the 5th-highest chance to win it all at 9.2 percent.
The Athletic/The New York Times college football staff went even further, with nine panel members picking the Ducks to win the 2026 national championship. CBS Sports’ Cody Nagel also backed Oregon, writing, “The past two seasons for Oregon ended with losses to the eventual national champion,” Nagel wrote.
“But now it’s the Ducks’ turn to break through. ”
Inside the building, Dan Lanning says the standard is even tougher than anything being said from the outside. He made that clear Tuesday at Big Ten Media Days.
“Nobody's going to have higher expectations for our team than us,” said Lanning. “High expectations. We've got a lot that we want to accomplish.”
That’s a fitting line for a coach who has already stacked up a lot in Eugene. Since arriving after the 2021 season, Lanning has gone 48-8, won a Big Ten title, and guided Oregon to back-to-back College Football Playoff appearances in 2024 and 2025.
The 2024 team earned the No. 1 overall seed. What he has not done yet is deliver a national championship to Oregon.
If he gets there, it would be a first for the program and another major milestone for a coach whose rise has been unusually fast.
A lot of that push starts with Moore, who enters his junior season after a big 2025 run. He threw for 3,565 yards and 30 touchdowns while completing 71.8 percent of his passes, and he used that production to lead Oregon to the College Football Playoff Semifinals.
Now he’s in position to chase more than team history. Oregon has had only one Heisman winner, with Mariota winning it in 2014, and the Ducks have kept knocking on the door since then. Bo Nix was a finalist in 2023, and Dillon Gabriel was a finalist in 2024.
Moore has the numbers, the spotlight, and the schedule to make another run at it. Games against USC and Ohio State give him the kind of national stage that can shape a Heisman race, and Oregon’s experienced offensive pieces should help him keep piling up production.
For the Ducks, the message is clear: the goals are bigger now. For Moore, that means a season built around both team history and a shot at one of college football’s top individual prizes.
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Dan Lanning Is Building Oregons Next Recruiting Advantage
Oregons push to stay ahead off the field is taking shape in a big way, with the football program expanding its facilities to roughly 500,000 square feet from a current building footprint of about 150,000. For Dan Lanning, the project is about more than adding room. It is part of the Ducks effort to keep upgrading the player experience and the day-to-day operation around a program that has long sold itself as forward-thinking in college football.
Construction is still underway, so Oregon has been juggling practice time at Autzen Stadium, the Moshofsky Center and outdoor fields in the meantime. Even with the temporary setup, the broader message is clear: the Ducks are trying to turn infrastructure into a recruiting edge, and Lanning wants the program to remain one of the sports standard-bearers for innovation. [Read more 🡒]
Dana Altman Just Gave Oregons Frontcourt A Big Boost
Oregons frontcourt got another jolt this week when Arkansas transfer Malique Ewin joined the roster after the NCAA granted an additional season of eligibility to the 2022 recruiting class. Its the latest sign that Dana Altman is not just patching holes inside, but reshaping the Ducks entire interior rotation with a mix of experience and size.
Ewin brings a well-traveled rsum that includes stops at Ole Miss, JUCO, Florida State and Arkansas, and his college path has been marked by steady growth along the way. With Sean Stewart already back and several other forwards and centers added, Oregon suddenly has the look of a team that expects its frontcourt to be a strength rather than a question. [Read more 🡒]
Oregons Young Secondary Could Become A Real Strength Fast
With fall camp approaching, Oregons secondary is drawing more attention than it usually would for a group this young. The Ducks are bringing back All-American cornerback Brandon Finney Jr., while freshman Jett Washington and transfer Koi Perich give Dan Lanning a mix of proven talent, raw upside and flexibility that could make the back end of the defense a fast-moving project once practices begin.
Lanning has been encouraged by what he has seen from that group, pointing to their physical tools and the way they approach getting better. Washington and Perich are in position to push for immediate roles in the secondary, with Washington also a candidate to help on special teams and Perich offering versatility from his previous experience. If the development comes quickly, Oregon may not have to wait long for this unit to become a real strength. [Read more 🡒]