Nick Moore wasn’t always a quarterback.
Since Pop Warner, the recent Hart High graduate played receiver, running back and safety before he cemented his position as a quarterback.
The role suited him well and earned him the title of The Signal’s 2016-17 Most Exciting Player.
“My dad basically broke it down for me,” Moore said. “He told me, there’s a lot of athletes out there … I’m not going to be very big, I’m not going to be the fastest guy, but I’m going to be athletic and I have a good arm.
“It wasn’t that bad of a transition. And the thought of having the ball every play didn’t sound too bad.”
His freshman year, the Indians freshman team went 10-0 with Moore as the field general, upping Moore’s confidence.
He played at safety and receiver on varsity his sophomore season before switching back to quarterback for his junior and senior years.
“That helped me run that ball,” Moore said of his experience at multiple positions. “(It created) a vision at a young age, how to run away from people, how to put moves on people. I learned that and could implement that.”
Sprinkle in some knowledge from Hart coach Mike Herrington, Moore’s brother Matt (a quarterback for the Miami Dolphins) and his dad (a 1977 St. Louis Cardinals draft pick) and you’ve got a recipe for an explosive senior year.
Coming off an ACL tear that ended his junior campaign two games early, Moore threw for 2,154 yards, 21 touchdowns and seven interceptions as a senior. He rushed for another 709 yards and 15 touchdowns.
His strong arm and confident legs guided the Indians to a 4-1 league record, good for second place in the Foothill League.
“Balancing the run and the pass, I kind of liked it,” Moore said. “Teams couldn’t guess what we were doing. We were able to put Da’Von (Jones) back there. He can go out for a pattern, he can run the ball, I can run, we had a bunch of weapons we could use last year.”
Moore will be continuing his playing career at Eastern Washington University. He arrived on July 11 for summer workouts.
While the practice fields and stadiums may change, he’ll always have the mindset that made him this year’s Most Exciting Player.
“My dad told me once when you step on the field, you have to want to be the best player on the field,” said Moore. “You have to own it or it’s never going to happen. I had that mindset that I’m going to be the best. Whatever they do, we can come back from.”
Inside the Ballot Box
| Finalists | First | Second | Third | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nick Moore | 5 | 6 | 0 | 11 |
| Taylor Scott | 5 | 3 | 1 | 9 |
| Tanner Olson | 5 | 0 | 2 | 7 |
| 1st place vote=5 points 2nd place vote=3 3rd place vote=1 |
Past Most Exciting Players
2015-16 Chibuzo Ikonte (Valencia)
2014-15 Jay jay Wilson (Valencia)
2013-14 Lewis Stallworth and Connor Wingenroth (Hart)
