Leonard Moore Is Hoping To Develop Into The Next Great Notre Dame Cornerback
On Wednesday, Notre Dame signed their 2024 recruiting class, putting a bow on a tremendous group on National Signing Day. There were several high upside defenders who signed, including standout Round Rock (Texas) High School cornerback Leonard Moore.
He is one of the recent victories that the Irish staff has had in Texas, securing one of the more talented cover men in the country. As a student, person, and player, Moore is a perfect fit in South Bend. Funny enough, that fit wasn’t as obvious to him early on.
"(My perception) definitely changed a lot because originally when you look at Notre Dame, it kind of gives off that New England Patriots type vibe,” Moore told Irish Breakdown. "It’s like either you hate them or you love them. That's how I always saw it.”
In the beginning, Notre Dame was a name but wasn’t a huge player. The more that the talented defender learned about them, the quicker his preconceived opinions changed.
"I never thought about Notre Dame as much,” Moore explained. "I never saw myself even coming here as a football player. It was never in my thought process but when I got down there, it's just your whole world changes obviously.
“Then Coach (Marcus) Freeman and that whole entire coaching staff pretty much changed my view of Notre Dame,” he continued. "Obviously it's a good school, so I'm looking at it as a place where I can get good academics and ball out on the football field.”
Another big reason that Moore chose the Irish was Mike Mickens, who he holds in very high regard. Mickens’ track record of developing great cornerbacks speaks for itself. It’s something that really made Notre Dame extremely appealing.
"That's huge,” he explained. "He's one of the best cornerbacks coaches in the country, if not the best. So that was a huge part of my decision to go to Notre Dame, as I've seen what he's done with those guys that he has there.
“That cornerback room is deep,” Moore added. "It really is and that's what you want to see as a cornerback recruit, is a coach who can develop you into the best player you can be. Also the relationship he has with the players off the field as well is special.”
Moore can already see himself playing for Coach Mickens, quite literally. He actually sees himself already in one of his star pupils.
"I definitely could see some similarities just between Cam Hart just because we're obviously both big, tall, longer guys,” he stated. "I also feel like I come down and make some tackles as well.”
Although Moore isn’t enrolling until the summer, he has already established some big goals for his first season on campus. That’s going to start with the preparation. It’ll take the little things to lead to the big stage.
"It's definitely about that first lift,” Moore said. "I just got to see what it's like because everybody says ten times is different. But even past the lift, I obviously imagine myself in the blue and gold a lot, just being on the field too. So that first time I get in the field is definitely going to be a huge moment for me.”
Moore is often underrated, mostly due to him being limited as a senior with an injury. If he is able to get back to full health, Notre Dame is set to get a big boost in an already talented cornerback room in 2024.
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