Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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50 NOV. 6, 2017 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED BY COREY BODDEN During Irish Invasion June 10, lo- cal safety Paul Moala of Mishawaka (Ind.) Penn impressed the Notre Dame coaches after running a 4.45 40-yard dash and performing well in drills. His showing led the staff to ex- tend an offer to the 6-0, 202-pounder after the camp. Many thought Moala's recruitment would come to a quick end once he earned an offer from the Irish, but that was not the case. Moala continued to let the process go on and made several return trips to check out the Notre Dame pro- gram, including the first two home games of the season against Temple Sept. 2 and Georgia Sept. 9. The senior decided to take an of- ficial visit during the weekend of the USC game Oct. 21 and was tabbed the most likely to pull the trigger and commit. That came to fruition when Moala announced Oct. 22 his inten- tions to be part of Notre Dame's 2018 class. Moala became commitment No. 17 for the Irish and bumped their class to No. 11 on the Rivals team rankings at the time of his pledge. "Number one, it's a great football tradition," Penn head coach Cory Yeoman said when asked what pushed Moala towards the Irish. "That's important. He loves the game, loves to compete and natu- rally our proximity. Living right here is important. "Then after football is all said and done, whenever that happens to be, what that Notre Dame diploma can do for young men and women. It's special. All of those things are impor- tant. … In Paul's mind, those are all second to none." The opportunity to remain near his family while in college was also intriguing to Moala and factored into his final decision. "I think that's a neat experience, too, being able to stay close to home," Yeoman stated. "The family is very, very important to Paul, and he has a great family. "I think that has a lot to do with what he's been able to accomplish in life — the family unity is so impor- tant to him." Moala's recruitment picked up this summer and fall where he landed his four high-major Football Bowl Subdivision offers from Notre Dame, Nebraska, Iowa and Vanderbilt. Be- fore the summer, his offer list in- cluded Air Force, Utah State and several Mid-American Conference programs. "First of all, he's a great competi- tor," Yeoman said of Moala's game. "He's a playmaker no matter where he's at on the field. … He's blocked numerous kicks, and returned punts and kickoffs back for touchdowns. He's even got a touchdown pass. When he's on defense for us, he runs the back end. He's got a great nose for the football. "He's a great tackler. He's one of the leading tacklers on the team. That's the scheme we run. Our safe- ties are important not only in pass coverage, but run support. He's not scared to get his nose up in there and make big hits up close to the line of scrimmage." For Yeoman, Moala helps raise the play of the Penn defense because of his work ethic throughout the week and on Friday nights. "We've had some great safeties in the past, and Paul is definitely one of the best," Yeoman explained. "It's huge to have a guy like that with his skill set and that kind of personality. "He makes everybody around [him] play better. That's the kind of leader he is. He works hard in prac- tice. When you see guys like him working that hard in practice every- one else falls in line and works hard, too. … That's a great example for not just the young kids, but everyone on the team." While some may question the Irish staff 's decision to add Moala — a two-star recruit by Rivals — to the class, Yeoman believes his senior standout will be a playmaker for Notre Dame when the time comes. "He's going to be a great teammate and work extremely hard," Yeoman said. "He's passionate about what he does, but he's also very humble. "He's going to put his head down and keep getting better. He's not a brash kid, but lets his actions do the talking, which is great." ✦ FILM ANALYSIS Strengths Notre Dame needed another safety in this class, and Paul Moala gives it a versatile player that likes to hit and one that also can cover … Has a lot of untapped explosiveness, but he's already a fast player that shows quick feet, fluid hips and impressive change of direction ability … Instinctive player that likes to come downhill and is a willing hitter … Isn't asked to cover downfield much in high school, but showed top-level coverage skills this summer at Notre Dame's Irish Invasion … Could play either safety spot or nickel in the Notre Dame defense. Areas For Improvement His body isn't where it needs to be yet, but the frame is there … Needs to add more strength, especially with his lower body … Gaining additional lower-body strength in the weight room should help improve his explosive- ness … Can get a bit too aggressive at times. — Bryan Driskell COMMITMENT PROFILE PAUL MOALA "He makes everybody around play better. That's the kind of leader he is." MISHAWAKA (IND.) PENN HEAD COACH CORY YEOMAN ON MOALA Notre Dame Lands Local 2018 Safety Moala, who currently stars for Mishawaka (Ind.) Penn, picked the Irish over Vanderbilt, Nebraska and Iowa. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM