admin
In every single season-opener for the Oregon Ducks, there’ve been questions that have to be answered. Sometimes a lot, sometimes fewer. But in 2025, there seem to be more questions than in recent years. Why is that?
For starters, the 2024 campaign was a massive success, as the Ducks were ranked No. 1 in the country for the back half of the season, won the Big Ten title, and claimed the No. 1 seed and a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff. It was a success — until it wasn’t, as they were run off the field by the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Rose Bowl, who they’d previously beaten at home earlier in the season.
An offseason removed from a campaign full of months-long highs that came to a sudden and disappointing end, the big-picture question that must be answered is this: What exactly does success look like?
As Oregon readies itself for its Week 1 matchup with the FCS Montana State Bobcats, there’s an influx of talented transfers and a highly-regarded true freshman who’s expected to make an impact right away. It’s another year of new Big Ten opponents, meaning irregular travel patterns and several extended trips to the Midwest and the East Coast.
Those are the big-picture things that will play out over the course of the season, but what specifically will be answered — potentially definitively — against Montana State?
Here are five questions the Ducks will have to answer in Week 1.
Can the Ducks Start Strong?
The first order of business for head coach Dan Lanning’s squad will be getting out of the gates fast — something that didn’t happen in last year’s season-opener against the Idaho Vandals.
In that game, Oregon went to halftime with a 14-0 lead after an uninspiring effort against a pesky Vandals team. Just over five minutes into the fourth quarter, Idaho managed to pull within three points before the Ducks were able to put it away with a touchdown.
The Bobcats are of a similar ilk to the Vandals a season ago: physical, pesky, and not afraid of the moment.
If Lanning doesn’t have the Ducks focused and ready to play, this one very well could be tight in the fourth quarter against an FCS team for a second consecutive year. Oregon played with fire and managed to escape last year, but if you play with fire too many times, you’ll get burned.
Is Dante Moore the Answer?
For quarterbacks, it’s not particularly difficult to see if a guy has “it.” Confidence, resiliency, accuracy, and the ability to run the offense will all be things to look at in Dante Moore’s first start at Oregon on Saturday.
Those were not things he did at a high level as a true freshman with the UCLA Bruins in 2023, but the hope is that after a season sitting behind accomplished college veteran Dillon Gabriel, he’ll have taken giant leaps forward. Being in the second year of offensive coordinator Will Stein’s scheme should also do wonders for Moore.
Showing his talent in practice is one thing, but putting it all together on the field on Saturdays is another. It may not be determined in the first quarter, but by the end of the game, we’ll have a clearer picture of Moore’s standing with the Ducks and what his future could look like.
State of the Wide Receiver Room?
It’s just a fact that Oregon’s receiving room is largely unproven heading into this season. While there’s likely to be a heavy rotation, none of the projected starters in Malik Benson, Dakorien Moore, and Gary Bryant Jr. have reached 600 yards receiving in a season. Even then, that was Bryant all the way back in 2021 at USC.
Reserves Justius Lowe, Jeremiah McClellan and Kyler Kasper have not made a significant impact at the collegiate level either. There’s certainly talent, led by the five-star Moore — but he’s a true freshman. How much can really be put on his plate?
Evan Stewart was supposed to be the alpha of the group, but he tore his patellar tendon and is out for the majority of the season, if not all of it. Now, it’s a committee approach. In reality, someone will need to step up and reveal themselves as the go-to receiver for Dante Moore.
We may not entirely know after Week 1, as the receiver room will surely shift as the season progresses, but seeing if anyone emerges from the bunch will be an interesting thing to watch for.
Will the Ducks Stop the Run?
The Ducks saw four players in their front seven get drafted to the NFL in 2025, three of whom were along the defensive line. That led to them coming into this season with a revamped group headlined by 2024 first-team All-Big Ten defensive end Matayo Uiagalelei, former USC defensive tackle Bear Alexander, and returners in defensive tackle A’Mauri Washington and defensive end Aydin Breland.
They’re a talented bunch, as all were highly-rated recruits coming out of high school. But their first task of this season will be far from easy, as the Bobcats are purely a running football team.
Last season, Montana State ranked second in the FCS in rushing at 294.9 yards per game. They notched 6.5 yards per rush and finished with nearly 5,000 rushing yards across 16 games.
And though they lost their starting quarterback in Tommy Mellott, they replaced him with former Stanford quarterback Justin Lamson, who was primarily a runner for the Cardinal.
This new front for the Ducks will have their hands full right away. Will they respond, pushing back the line of scrimmage and disallowing a consistent Bobcats running game, or will Lamson and Co. have their way on the ground? We’ll have to see.
Dillon Thieneman Aside, Who Steps Up in the Secondary?
Safety Dillon Thieneman has proven himself as one of the best safeties in the nation after leading the Purdue Boilermakers in tackles the last two seasons and being named a freshman All-American in 2023 after intercepting six passes. He’s going to be excellent in the Ducks’ secondary. But who else will step up beside him?
As there is everywhere else on the roster, there’s talent at both the cornerback and safety positions. Kingston Lopa is expected to assume the field-side safety role while Thieneman patrols the boundary. At corner, multiple guys will have to emerge from a group of Theran Johnson, Jadon Canady, Jahlil Florence, Sione Laulea, Ify Obidegwu, and Na’eem Offord. That’s six guys who could have a chance at two spots.
Johnson and Canady are both transfers and have starting experience elsewhere. The others have yet to either get on the field at all or play consistently enough football to guarantee themselves a starting spot.
Though the Bobcats don’t project as a throwing offense, they may feel confident testing some previously untested cornerbacks on the outside. Tackling will also be an emphasis on the perimeter, something Thieneman excels at, but will need someone else to step up alongside him.
Contact/Follow @Ducks_Wire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oregon Ducks news, notes, and opinions.
#questions #Oregon #Ducks #answer #Montana #State #Week
