Oregon football gets closer look at new quarterbacks during 2024 spring game

It’s been a busy and emotional few days for Oregon wide receiver Tez Johnson.

It started Thursday when he flew home to Alabama to surprise his family at an NFL draft watch party for his brother Bo Nix as the former Duck was selected with the No. 12 overall pick by Denver.

“I just wish the best for him and am happy for him,” Johnson said. “I told (my mom) I wasn’t coming and told her, ‘It’s alright, I’ll be in the same spot next year.’ I was just playing it off, then I showed up and she had tears in her eyes. It was awesome.”

With his former quarterback headed to the pros, Johnson was back in Eugene Saturday taking an offseason test run with Nix’s replacement during Oregon’s spring game at Autzen Stadium.

Playing with projected starting quarterback Dillon Gabriel, Johnson caught four passes for 35 yards for the Green team, which beat the white team 28-17 in the inter-squad scrimmage.

It was just a glimpse of what Oregon hopes will be a lethal combination come fall when the Ducks make their Big Ten debut.

Last season, with Nix throwing him passes, Johnson set the Oregon single-season record for receptions with 86 for 1,182 yards and 10 touchdowns. That included 11 receptions for 172 yards in the Fiesta Bowl win against Liberty on Jan. 1.

Gabriel, who threw for for 3,660 yards and 30 touchdowns last season at Oklahoma, was 14-of-21 passing for 163 yards and two touchdowns on Saturday.

“There was ups and downs,” he said. “The ebbs and flows of spring ball. I think the biggest thing was just getting out there and having fun.”

Both of Gabriel’s TDs came in the second half. The first was a 5-yard pass to Justius Lowe with 3:21 to play in the third quarter.

He also had a 24-yard connection with running back Jay Harris with 16 seconds left to play.

“I loved how aggressive we were and at times that also was where we struggled, just finding ways to complete deep balls,” Gabriel said. “But we settled in and the guys made some plays.”

On the White team, quarterbacks Dante Moore and Austin Novosad split reps and both had some impressive moments.

Novosad, a redshirt freshman who was third on the depth chart last season, went 11-of-19 for 143 yards and an interception. He also took a series on the Green team and completed a well-placed back-shoulder 34-yard throw along the sideline to Lowe.

Moore was 11-of-16 for 87 and had a 75-yard touchdown run on the final play of the game that had been taken off the board when the official stats were announced, much to Moore’s surprise.

“It did?” said Moore, a sophomore who transferred from UCLA in December. “Well in my head I scored, I think we all know I scored, but at the end of the day, great game, great play to finish out the game, great atmosphere. Blessed to play my first spring game.”

Freshman Luke Moga also got some reps behind Gabriel, throwing 48 on 2-of-3 passing, with most of it coming on a 42-yard pass to freshman Jack Ressler. That catch set up an 8-yard scoring run by Moga.

“I think all of our quarterbacks had some really positive plays … but I’ll have to go back and watch the film to get a better look but I think we saw some things from Luke and Austin as well, even Brock (Thomas) when he was in there," coach Dan Lanning said. "I’ll go see the film and see how it looks. I feel really good about our quarterbacks. I think we have talent in that room.”

Lanning will get no argument from his top returning receiver.

“Every quarterback played outstanding today," said Johnson, who exited the team locker room Saturday wearing a Denver Broncos team hat. "I feel like we’ve got so many weapons, our quarterback room is so deep, you could just pick your poison with any of them.”

Follow Chris Hansen on X @chansen_RG or email at chansen@registerguard.com.

This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Oregon football debuts Dillon Gabriel, Dante Moore at spring game