Saturday’s big showdown between West Coast powerhouses USC and Oregon turned nasty and downright scary when a massive hit to Oregon QB Dante Moore knocked him out of the game.
Midway through the second quarter, Moore escaped the pocket and tried to run upfield. After securing first down yardage he was blasted in the face by USC linebacker Desman Stephens II with so much force that Moore was knocked unconscious.
A mini brawl erupted on the field as several Oregon players went after Stephens in retaliation. Flags were thrown on both teams and Stephens was given a personal foul penalty.
As for Moore, he was knocked unconscious and had to be carted off the field.
Prayers for Moore
“Holy (expletive),” Will Compton wrote on X. “Man I hope Dante Moore is okay.”
“Regardless of the call being correct or not— You never want to see a player go down, prayers up for Dante Moore. You always want to play the best version of your opponent,” a USC fan wrote.
“OMG terrifying hit on Dante Moore as he’s sliding, hope he’s ok,” a third user wrote.
“I’m not a doctor, but that looked like the fencing posture from Dante Moore. Hope he’s alright,” Albert Breet wrote.
Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images
But on top of the prayers, the main reaction right now is anger. Oregon fans are downright furious with Stephens and many are calling for him to be banned from football outright.
“Praying for Dante Moore. That was disgusting by USC. Celebrating after the play. Totally reflective of the Lincoln Riley culture…”
“What just happened to Dante Moore was grounds for a full on brawl. I’m at a loss for words on how #8 for USC chose to act.”
“A hit like this is not something to laugh about.”
All emotions aside, we can only hope that Moore hasn’t suffered a serious injury.
