Dante Moore opens up on his relationship with Dorian Thompson-Robinson

As UCLA competes in spring football practice, the Bruins are hoping five-star freshman quarterback Dante Moore is able to get up to speed quickly. He’s got a bit of an ace up his sleeve when it comes to then, leaning on the experience of former quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson.

Robinson has spent much of his time this spring at UCLA as he trains for the NFL Draft.

“Dorian, I appreciate him a lot,” Moore said. “When I first met him at the Elite 11 I always watched him, his highlight tapes and what he’s done at UCLA and being a great playmaker for the team. I knew he was a great person to talk to and pick his brain.”

Thompson-Robinson certainly has a deep reservoir of knowledge to tap into after being a major contributor for the Bruins for the last five seasons.

The talented dual-threat quarterback put together his best season as a senior under Chip Kelly‘s tutelage, managing to throw for 3,154 yards and 21 touchdowns, against just 10 interceptions. He also added 646 yards rushing and 12 touchdowns on the ground.

Needless to say, he’s got a lot of scheme knowledge that can be useful for Moore.

But Dante Moore is leaning on Dorian Thompson-Robinson for more than that, looking at him as a great overall role model of how to play at a high level in college and succeed both on and off the field.

“Him being a young, Black quarterback, especially in my same shoes as me going to the college level, he’s a great person that gives out great sources that you need to know about being a quarterback,” Moore said. “Today at practice, example, I was talking to him about some footwork, about understanding everything like that.”

Thompson-Robinson will get his chance to live in the spotlight for a bit later this month when the NFL Draft arrives. Though it’s a deep quarterback class, his athleticism figures to be too good to pass up.

Until then, he’s continuing to be a resource however he can for the UCLA football program.

The program definitely stands to gain a lot from Dorian Thompson-Robinson helping Dante Moore get up to speed a little bit more quickly.

“Just him being on campus just being a source right now getting ready for the draft, I just appreciate him every day,” Moore said. “I appreciate him, appreciate everyone that’s on campus.”

Moore arrived at UCLA as one of the most high-profile recruits in the program’s history.

He was ranked as a five-star prospect and the No. 3 overall player in the country in the 2023 recruiting class according to the On3 Industry Rankings. Moore also checked in as the No. 2 quarterback in the class and the No. 1 player from the state of Michigan, hailing from Detroit (Mich.) Martin Luther King.