Dillon Gabriel details what he learned on every step of transfer portal journey

Dillon Gabriel’s college football career has covered more games — 56, to date — and many more miles than most players would ever dream of. From the central Pacific to Florida to Oklahoma and now back on the West Coast, there’s not much Gabriel hasn’t seen or done.

Coming from Hawaii as a high school prospect, Gabriel traveled thousands of miles to play at UCF. From there, he transferred to Oklahoma for two seasons and now finds himself on the West Coast, quarterbacking the Oregon Ducks. And at each of the stops in his football journey, Gabriel has learned something about himself, football, or grown as a player — usually some combination of the three.

Speaking on “The Triple Option” podcast this week, Gabriel reflected on how each stop and place shaped him, starting with his native Hawaii.

“Hawaii, I think I found my love for the game, my dad being my coach and my experience I had at a young age, growing up. It was special,” Gabriel said. “I had coaches that pushed me to be the best version of myself and on a little island like Oahu in Hawaii, a very simple life. And you find love for the game and continue to get better everywhere you can.”

When he arrived at UCF, Gabriel was quickly thrust into the action, playing 13 games as a true freshman in 2019. He’d end up playing three seasons in Orlando, putting up gaudy numbers before an injury cost him the 2021 season after three games.

The whole time there, Gabriel said, helped him understand he needed to buckle down to adjusting to the college game, and really hone his mental abilities.

Even still, they were probably the last of the days where he truly would just be dropping back and relying on talent to make things happen.

“When I went to UCF, I think that was my first moment of really welcoming to the show of what football’s really about,” Gabriel said. “I learned a lot about the game and I think I called every two-high shell Cover 2 when I first got there, so I learned a lot in that sense and kind of was thrown into the fire. But I call those my youngin’ days because there was a lot of just doing and not a lot of knowledge behind it.” 

Ahead of his senior season, Gabriel transferred to Oklahoma, where he’d spend two years. Gabriel was generally successful in Norman, playing 24 games and throwing for more than 3000 yards both seasons.

And while UCF had been something like his undergraduate education, Gabriel’s time at Oklahoma could be akin to getting his masters in football. He also learned a great deal about how he needs to be an active, affirmative leader.

“But when I did make that transition to Oklahoma, I felt like the new and improved, kind of grown up version of myself,” Gabriel said. “I was forced to grow up after a 6-7 year that was up and down and a bunch of games that were one score games that could’ve went our way or not, but they didn’t. And you learn a lot about the difference and the difference between winning and losing is very slim. So you’re grateful for the wins and you realize that there’s so much more to get better at. So that offseason going into my second year, I really took it serious. Changed my body, changed the way I led, being vocal and not just being a guy who’s lead by example. I don’t believe in that anymore. Lead by example is just a good teammate, somebody who just kind of does the right things. A leader is one who changes the temperature in the room and when you walk in everyone knows you’re there. So, made  that change and kind of grew up there.”

And that has all led him to Oregon where, in what will be his final year of college football, Gabriel is working to put the collected lessons and growth into action for a final season of glory. And within that, there is one final lesson Gabriel is living out: The accolades and glory are best when shared.

“And then coming here I feel like Oregon’s getting the best version of me and my playing style, who I am as a person and more importantly, what I bring to the table for this environment,” Gabriel said. “And that’s just me being me. And I think that’s important, as well. Authentic version of a quarterback that’s not presidential or better than. I’m one of the boys and I’m also one to get everyone fired up and riled up. So, I think through that long journey of football I’ve played a bunch. I started my freshman year in high school all the way up until my senior year, got thrown into the fire at UCF my freshman year and have been playing ever since. So, I think all that experience, you’re kinda forced to change and grow up. But I’ve been the young guy, I’ve been the rookie, I’ve been the vet, I’ve been everything in between.”