Oregon moves forward without its star QB and offensive coordinator

What do both departures mean for the Ducks (4-3, 2-2 Big Ten), who have five games left in the regular season starting Saturday against No. 18 Northwestern (6-1, 3-1) at Autzen Stadium?

Oregon’s offense has already played three full games without Moore, went 1-2 and lacked production and points in all of them which certainly precipitated Mehringer's dismissal.

Lanning said assistant quarterbacks coach Jay Johnson will be the Ducks’ play caller going forward and it now becomes his job to try to unlock an offense that hasn’t scored more than 17 points in the last three games – including in Saturday’s 21-10 loss to Illinois – and just 42 points total during that stretch.

When asked what he wanted the identity of the offense to be going forward, Lanning laid out a handful of expectations that included staying on schedule, playing better on third down, getting more out of the run game and utilizing playmakers.

“I think those things have to show up,” Lanning said. “And then we’d like to be more effective in the way we push the ball down the field, which hasn’t shown up yet this year for us.”

For sure not in the games since Moore got injured.

Backup QBs struggle to fill Moore's cleats

Moore started four games this season, finished two, played one half in the blowout win against Portland State, and essentially one quarter against USC.  In that time, he completed 69.7% of his passes (69 for 99) for 926 yards, nine touchdowns and no interceptions.

In the three games Moore hasn’t played, backup QBs Dyan Raiola – who has started two of those games – and Brock Thomas have combined to pass for 847 yards, four touchdowns, three interceptions, lost three fumbles and completed 60.1% of their passes (83 for 138).

The presumption is Raiola will continue as the starter. He played the entire game against the Fighting Illini last Saturday and helped orchestrate come-from-behind wins against USC, when he replaced Moore, and Nebraska, when he replaced Thomas in the fourth quarter.

But Raiola’s issue has been consistency. He was spectacular against the Trojans, throwing for 289 yards and two touchdowns, and was a bolt of energy against the Cornhuskers in the fourth quarter when he went 11 for 18 for 59 yards, one touchdown and led two scoring drives.

He was also detrimentally bad in the loss to the Bruins as he completed 6 of 19 for 43 yards and had three turnovers. Against Illinois, he was 27 for 42 for 246 yards but struggled to move the Ducks down the field after a game-opening touchdown drive.

An opportunity for Akili Smith Jr.?

Lanning addressed the inconsistency Monday, suggesting that fixing the issues at quarterback won’t fall solely on Raiola.

“There’s so much external pressure on that position specifically because everything on offense runs through that position,” he said. “So, does that mean that we simplify? Does that mean we make things really clear and concise? … We just got to be able to operate a little better, but it has to happen on the field.”

With neither Raiola nor Thomas playing well enough in recent weeks, there continues to be clamoring to see Akili Smith Jr. get a shot. The 6-foot-5, 245-pound dual-threat sophomore with a big arm and ability to run is the son of former Oregon quarterback legend Akili Smith.

“There’s 100% an opportunity (for Smith),” Lanning said. “Again, you want to see it in practice before it relates to a game, and things have to look a little bit different. … I think he has a lot of value. His arm strength, some of the best in that room. He’s able to do some things with his legs. He’s become a much better player for us. We need a level of consistency from him throughout practice.”

Whether it's Raiola, Thomas or Smith, Lanning said the expectation will be the same.

“We’re not the only team in the country playing with a different quarterback,” Lanning said. “So, we have to be able to do that at a high level. I think we have guys that can do that. We have to make sure as coaches we put them position to do that.”

Chris Hansen covers University of Oregon football, men’s basketball, track and field, cross country and softball for The Register-Guard. You can reach him at chansen@registerguard.com.

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This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Oregon moves forward without its star QB and offensive coordinator

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