Oregon quarterback Dante Moore has publicly called for stronger mental health services in Oregon after describing his own struggles with depression tied to the pressures of high-level college football.
In a letter sent to Gov. Tina Kotek and published by The Oregonian/OregonLive, Moore said he battled deep depression early in his college career. He described feeling overwhelmed at 18 by the expectations that come with playing quarterback and by a family crisis: his mother, Jera Bohlen-Moore, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2023 during his first spring at UCLA.
Watching his mother go through chemotherapy while trying to stay focused on school and football, Moore wrote, took a heavy emotional toll. Her treatment ended positively — she was declared cancer-free in the summer of 2024 — and Moore has continued to raise awareness about cancer since transferring to Oregon.
Moore credited the combination of friends, family and timely access to mental health resources for helping him recover. He noted that, as a young Black man and athlete, asking for help can feel especially difficult and requires vulnerability and trust. Those supports, he said, made a crucial differen
