Oregon QB Gabriel, 24, hits back at age critics

LOS ANGELES — After six seasons of college football, three different programs and countless passes thrown, Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel has seen and heard it all.

So, when the 24-year-old, sixth-year senior was asked Monday to respond to criticism regarding his age and how long he’s been in college, Gabriel didn’t flinch. Instead, the former UCF and Oklahoma quarterback fired right back.

“I think a lot of people are mad that they weren’t able to play to a certain age,” Gabriel, who received an extra two years of eligibility thanks to a redshirt season and due to the COVID-19 pandemic, said. “The older the player you are, I think at a certain point you gotta ask yourself, if you’ve got the biggest interview of your life, and someone said, ‘Hey, you can have six years to study or three years,’ I think anyone would say six.”

As Gabriel and Oregon prepare to face Ohio State in this year’s Rose Bowl Game with a chance to go to the College Football Playoff semifinals, Gabriel is three touchdowns away from surpassing Case Keenum’s FBS record of 155 career touchdowns and four touchdowns away from surpassing Miami’s Cam Ward, who set the FCS and FBS record with his 156th touchdown pass in this week’s Pop-Tarts Bowl.

Ward, like Gabriel, has played for three different teams — Incarnate Word, Washington State and most recently, Miami — and been in college since 2020. Both he and Gabriel were Heisman Trophy finalists this season. As one of the sport’s elder statesmen, Gabriel’s perspective is that quantity, in this case, is just as important as quality.

“As years go on, there’s progression, there’s improvement, there’s evolution. I feel like I’ve had that chance,” Gabriel said. “I think there’s something to patience and believing in a person and allowing them to flourish and grow. The more opportunities you can put yourself in any situation, I think you get more comfortable with it. That’s not just football, it’s anywhere in life. You learn more about the game, you learn more about people, and you’re just able to be better.”

The Hawaii native has relished his unique opportunity. In his six seasons, Gabriel has thrown for a total of 18,423 yards (second all-time), but this year has been his most efficient, completing a career-high 73.2 percent of his passes while leading Oregon to an undefeated regular season.

“I think there’s several moments we could point to this season where his experience has shown up and he’s created a lot of success for us on the field,” Oregon head coach Dan Lanning said. “I’ve said it several times, but I think that is one of Dillon’s strongest traits is his poise … The moments he shows up in are pressure moments.”

Despite being on the cusp of holding FBS records, Gabriel has repeatedly said the reason he didn’t declare for the NFL draft last year and transferred to Oregon was to make one last run at his ultimate goal: winning a national title. Gabriel and the Ducks are now just three wins away from accomplishing that goal.

“If I wanted individual awards, I would’ve played tennis or golf,” Gabriel said last week. “But I am playing football.”