College football fans take pride in a lot of things including championships, award-winning players, history, and traditions. Being the "it" school for certain positions in the game is also a source of pride. The first school/fanbase to really embrace this was Penn State, who dubbed themselves as "Linebacker U" due to the pipeline of linebackers they put into the NFL under Joe Paterno's watch.
The "Position U" titles are now more dynamic these days, thanks to the transfer portal, NIL, and the coaching carousel. It's difficult to keep track of who comes from where and which school a certain player claims. The best we can do is keep an eye on the trends.
For this reason, the University of Oregon is the closest thing we currently have to a true "QB U."
Let's start with individual awards. Oregon has produced a Heisman trophy winner at the position who is still in the NFL: Marcus Mariota. Other schools who fall into that category are LSU, USC, Alabama, Oklahoma, Lousiville, and Florida State.
The Oregon Ducks also have two former players who are current projected starters in the league: Justin Herbert and Bo Nix. The other schools in that category are LSU, USC, Alabama, Oklahoma, Louisville, and Ohio State.
The Ducks were also one of 13 programs to have a player taken in the 2025 NFL Draft. Included on that list are the usual suspects: Alabama, Louisville, and Ohio State among others.
There are a couple of factors that set Oregon apart from the field in terms of recency. We have seen two high-profile quarterbacks -- Bo Nix and Dillon Gabriel -- transfer to Oregon from Power 4 programs over the last two seasons. Nix became a first-round pick in 2024, while Gabriel was drafted in Round 3 in 2025.
Oregon is now the only team with quarterbacks drafted in consecutive NFL Drafts. And they have a good chance to extend that streak to three years with Dante Moore postured to assume the starting role in Eugene.
Moore was rated as the top prospect in the country coming out of high school in 2023. After spending one season at UCLA, he transferred to Oregon and served as Gabriel's backup during the 2025 campaign. He is currently projected as a late-round pick or a sleeper in the 2026 NFL Draft, but a year under center leading what should be another high-powered Oregon offense would certainly boost his draft stock.
That would make it three consecutive Oregon starters who transferred from Power 4 schools and went on to become NFL Draft picks. It would give Oregon a fifth current NFL quarterback. And it would give Oregon head coach Dan Lanning a major edge -- both in high school and the transfer portal -- when it comes to recruiting quarterbacks.
The modern college football player is looking for two things: NIL deals and a realistic path to the NFL. Any quarterback who laces up his cleats in Eugene is going to get both of those opportunities as long as Dan Lanning is the head coach. That along with their recent track record at the position makes Oregon the current "QB U."