Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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"And to do that, you have to maintain your composure." Southern Cal primarily deployed Lemon in the slot, and Notre Dame would move Moore inside to cover him. The 6-foot-2 boundary corner had lined up in the slot before, but only on occasion. In theory, it was a bad matchup for him. The world would later learn that actu- ally, nothing is a bad matchup for him. "He is as gifted in his toolbox as I've been around," Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman said. "His toolbox is ex- tremely large. And he has a skill set to play corner and play nickel, and I truly believe he could play safety. That's the type of player he is." In 41 snaps across from Lemon that night, Moore allowed just 2 receptions for 28 yards on 3 targets. Most people, Blake explained, don't understand how difficult that was. "You're talking about changing techniques, changing processing speed, changing movement abil- ity," Blake said. "There's so many things that change within that, and I don't think people realize how easy he made that transition look." Moore said he prepared that week as he would any other, and Blake could tell early in the night. While Moore has physical traits that make him versatile — he pointed to his length, which "allows me to dis- rupt routes" — it was his composure that once again stood out. "No false step, no wasted move- ment," Blake said. "He wasn't antsy at all, and I think that's the biggest thing. A lot of guys fight when they go from outside to inside, because it's a quicker window. They just become antsy, and I think he did a really good job of maintaining his composure." 'I KNOW THE GAME OF FOOTBALL' Moore doesn't read recreationally anymore, much to the chagrin of his ed- ucator parents. He does, however, study. Dr. Moore remembers running into his son when he was home in Round Rock, Texas, over the summer and find- ing him engrossed in film on his tablet. He asked what he was doing, and Moore said, "Oh, I'm just watching this one wide receiver." "I think he really has a gift at watch- ing film," Dr. Moore said. "And he told only two or three routes they can run if I have watched film correctly." And that, those closest to Moore (and Moore himself ) believe, is his super- power. It's also what truly allows him to thrive in the slot, where he more than likely would have faced Toney had the Heisman Trophy candidate remained healthy. Slot receivers have a wider route tree, which makes anticipating routes correctly all the more critical. "I know the game of football, so my IQ and obviously my athleticism al- low me to play with some of those guys in the slot and be versatile in certain ways," Moore said. "I think that's what separates him," Dr. Moore said. "There are a lot of talented people in college football, but I think what separates him is that sometimes he's running the route for the receiver." To do that against any wideout — in- cluding Barkate, who lines up primarily on the boundary and likely went head- to-head against Moore — requires in- tense preparation throughout the week. "It's the same sort of concept," Moore said about lining up in different spots. "I understand my opponent, I understand how they want to get a certain player the ball, and knowing what I gotta do to stop that." But when he prepares for a game like this, he doesn't put too much pressure on himself or operate any differently. The margin for error, Moore explained, is slimmer against the No. 1 team in the country in a game that decided the fate of Notre Dame's season. But a phone call with his dad earlier in the week told Dr. Moore everything he needed to know about his mindset. They didn't talk about the game much, if at all. They talked about classes, new projects coming up and generally how his week was going. Much of their conversation centered around a community event Moore is hosting Nov. 13, where he planned to bring 200 middle school students from the inner city to Notre Dame's campus. "He's just a different kind of guy," Dr. Moore said. "He's unique." ✦ "He is as gifted in his toolbox as I've been around." NOTRE DAME HEAD COACH MARCUS FREEMAN ON MOORE me, he said, 'Daddy, depending on down-and-distance and where the wide receiver's lined up at, there should be BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM NOV. 14, 2026 15