QB Dante Moore Dishes On Mario Cristobal, Josh Gattis and the Hurricanes
As Mario Cristobal continues to put together his first full recruiting class as Miami's head coach, at the top of his and the Hurricanes' checklist is to land a quarterback of the future.
Sure, the Canes held onto quarterback Jacurri Brown at the end of the 2022 cycle when Cristobal first got to town, but with incumbent starter Tyler Van Dyke looking more and more like a 2023 NFL Draft pick as the offseason lingers on, the room needs one addition from this class to maintain balance.
Finding an elite quarterback can also do wonders for a recruiting class, anywhere. And to bring Miami back to prominence, Cristobal understands that Miami's performance on the trail is just as if not more important than its record on the field.
That's why Detroit (Mich.) King signal-caller Dante Moore has entered the picture.
Since Cristobal was hired, Moore, a 6-foot-2, 195-pound gunslinger with 40 offers under his belt, has evolved from a non-factor to a priority recruit for the Canes, having visited Miami three times this year due to his connections with the staff.
"Cristobal, when he was at Oregon he was recruiting me, of course," Moore told All Hurricanes at the Overtime 7v7 tournament in Las Vegas, Nev. on Thursday. "So when he took Miami job [and] when we went there, he told me he played there. I really didn't know much about it, but he told me the stories about the blood, sweat and tears he's putting into that program, so I know it's gonna be a big game-changer.
"Really, I'm just gonna look into that for sure, and I know that in the next few years it's gonna be a powerhouse school again."
Moore isn't confident that Miami will turn things around due to Cristobal alone. In fact, he believes one of the most significant moves the Hurricanes made this offseason was poaching Michigan offensive coordinator Josh Gattis for the same job in Coral Gables in February.
It just so happens that Gattis had been on top of Moore's recruitment to the northern UM for two years, dating back to his hiring by the Wolverines at the beginning of 2019. Keep in mind, Michigan initially offered Moore when he was entering eighth grade.
"That was huge," Moore said of Gattis' move. "When he took that job I was just so shocked. I mean, me and him have been real close. Me and him, being at Michigan and seeing what they've done that past year with being No. 3 in the county and everything.
"Him going to Miami, that like blew off the roof, I was like 'wow.' I know Gattis is gonna pick the best spot for him, if it's money or if it's his family or if it's his development to being a better O.C. That was huge."
Will Moore's strong ties and growing interest in the Hurricanes lead to an official visit with Miami?
"Possibly, yeah," Moore said, acknowledging that his recruitment timeline has been a bit funky due to his school schedule. King doesn't break for the summer until June 27, the day a recruiting dead period is put in place that will last until nearly the end of July.
"Put that on there," Moore pleaded with a laugh. "My process is going very slow because I have school."
Some official visits are already out of the way, as Moore made his way to LSU and Oregon — his relationship with Tigers head coach Brian Kelly is strong from his time at Notre Dame, and the Ducks remain in the picture since Cristobal's departure — in April.
He also unofficially visit Texas A&M on June 17.
But Moore still has some thinking to do on how many of his three remaining officials he will use, and which programs he will utilize them on. As he evaluates his options, each program's history of quarterback development, academics, and fun life on campus make up his qualifications.
Notre Dame, Ohio State, Michigan, the schools he's officially visited already and The U are among those who stand out at this time, meeting those thresholds.
"I would say it's a hard choice," Moore admitted.
As such, Moore truly isn't in a hurry to wrap his recruitment up. He'll continue to thoroughly evaluate each school pursuing him and if that pushes his college commitment late into the year, so be it.
"I thought about this last night, being a kid from Detroit, how many people have we seen from Detroit that have excelled in the pros?" Moore pondered.
"As a young D-1 kid, really I'm just trying to enjoy it all. I haven't really been trying to rush myself and it's a true blessing from God. So, I'm really just trying to be a thankful kid and really just trying to it all, see every university as possible and enjoy it all."
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