Dylan Raiola to Start for Oregon After Benching, Latest Rumors with Dante Moore Out Injured

Dylan Raiola is reportedly Oregon's starting quarterback once again.

Pete Nakos of On 3 reported Thursday that Raiola is expected to start Saturday's game against Illinois in place of the injured Dante Moore. Moore has been out since he suffered a concussion during the Ducks' Sept. 26 win over USC, and Raiola was the initial replacement.

Oregon started Brock Thomas in the last game against Nebraska because of Raiola's struggles against UCLA before eventually turning back to Raiola in the fourth quarter.

It has been something of a roller-coaster ride for the Nebraska transfer ever since coming into the USC game following Moore's injury.

He led the Ducks to a high-profile victory in that one by going 19-of-25 for 289 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions and seemed to be the clear-cut answer at the position until Moore was ready to return.

However, it was a different story against the Bruins.

UCLA Bruins - Oregon Ducks Highlights

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Raiola went 6-of-19 passing with two interceptions and a lost fumble before he was benched for Thomas, who nearly directed a comeback in the 17-15 loss. It wasn't surprising that Oregon went with Thomas for the following game against the Cornhuskers, but he struggled throughout the contest at 9-of-20 passing with an interception.

Just when it seemed like Oregon was going to pick up its third loss of the season, Raiola entered the game in the fourth quarter and directed a field goal drive on his first possession and a touchdown drive on his second.

He found Jamari Johnson with fewer than 30 seconds remaining for the game-winning touchdown that kept the Ducks alive in the College Football Playoff race.

Now Raiola will get another opportunity in a season with little margin for error after the team already lost games to Oklahoma State and UCLA. Another defeat could be the end of Oregon's playoff hopes, and it still has games remaining against Ohio State, Michigan and Northwestern.

But even those games will lose some of their importance if Raiola cannot deliver against Illinois.