Pete Arbogast is taking heat after the USC radio voice’s on-air reaction to Dante Moore’s injury during Saturday’s 41-27 Oregon win at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
The play came in the second quarter when Moore scrambled, slid, and then was hit by USC linebacker Desman Stephens II. Stephens drove his shoulder into Moore’s head, sending the Oregon quarterback backward into the turf. Moore stayed down for several minutes before leaving the field on a cart and later being loaded into an ambulance.
Stephens was flagged on the play, but he celebrated anyway, which sparked a skirmish with several Oregon players.
In the radio booth, Arbogast said the hit did not look like targeting and insisted Moore had not slid feet-first. He also said Stephens went in helmet first and that Moore “ducked into that hit.”
“I saw him dive forward,” Arbogast claimed.
Radio analyst Shaun Cody, who played defensive line at USC from 2001-2004 and spent eight seasons in the NFL with Detroit and Houston, pushed back right away.
“He’s laying feet first,” Cody responded.
Arbogast doubled down: “Well, he is now because they spun him around.”
Cody disagreed again, and Arbogast said he wanted to see the replay. Once the broadcast got to the replay, though, it showed Moore sliding feet-first and Stephens going in head-first, with his right shoulder striking Moore in the head.
“Yeah, not a feet-first slide, it’s more of a knee slide,” Arbogast claimed while watching the replay.
Even after that, Arbogast added, “It didn’t look like targeting on the replay to us.”
Cody’s reaction on the broadcast said plenty. He smirked at Arbogast’s take, then later looked straight into the camera, eyes wide, and nodded as the disagreement hung in the air.
Dylan Raiola stepped in for Moore and threw for 289 yards and two touchdowns in the Oregon victory.
No. 15 Oregon is 3-1 overall and 1-0 in the Big Ten.
The Ducks host No. 23 UCLA, which is 4-0 and 2-0, at 12:30 p.m. on Oct.
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At the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Oregon freshman receiver Messiah Hampton found himself at the center of a tense moment after USC linebacker Desman Stephens II hit quarterback Dante Moore in the head. Hampton reacted angrily and went straight at Stephens before teammates, referees and coach Dan Lanning stepped in to separate the sides, underscoring just how heated the game had become in a hurry.
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