99 Virginia Football Thoughts Before Kickoff

On Friday, the “99 Virginia Football Thoughts Before Kickoff” series delved into the possibilities for the UVA defense as it tries to compensate for potential defensive line depth problems. Bronco Mendenhall will have options to sort through that could include examples such as a base 3-4 formation or a 2-4-5 sub package.

Regardless of his eventual choices, chances are high that multiple safeties will be involved. And that’s good news for Chris Moore.

The “99 Virginia Football Thoughts Before Kickoff” series looks at why.

No. 15 – Moore More Ready

Upon his arrival in Charlottesville, Bronco Mendenhall never shied away from the fact that he is willing to play young players and true freshmen whenever they’re ready and whenever a roster need dictates. That was the case with Chris Moore back in 2016, Mendenhall’s first season with the Hoos. Moore became one of nine true freshman to play that season and 17 more true freshmen followed suit in 2017.

Moore even started once as a true freshman, that coming in the season finale at Virginia Tech where he tallied eight tackles. That season-ending momentum didn’t carry forward into the offseason, though. Moore didn’t have good spring practices per the coaches and so he entered the summer of 2017, he needed to carve out a role anew. He managed to do just that last season, starting five times and posting 41 tackles with his first career interception along the way.

Yet, the pattern repeated itself. At the end of spring practices, Mendenhall noted that Moore hadn’t played as well as the coaches hoped. So he entered another summer with work to do.

“His history here has been pretty cyclical,” Mendenhall said. “Springs have not been strong; summers and falls have been. And so this summer was better than his last summer. His spring was similar to the previous spring, and his fall has been better than the last fall. We’d love to get more consistency in the spring. However, his summer and fall have been exceptional.”

That has carried Moore back into the thick of things so far in preseason practices. In fact, his teammates made him one of the first players to select a jersey in the program’s annual number draft. With the 10th overall pick, he decided to take No. 7. That choice was rooted in both religion, due to the number’s significance in the bible, and his childhood fanhood of Tyrann Mathieu, who wore the number at LSU.

Moore is the mix for significant playing time wearing that new single digit. There are only two starting spots at safety in the base defense, but there are ways to get more than that on the field. That includes the Cavaliers’ favored nickel package that brings a fifth defensive back – in this case, a third safety – into the lineup. Moore said he thinks “that’s our best package” defensively, an understandable opinion since that’s the one where he plays a prominent role and the one where he got those five starts in 2017.

It’s a strong option for Mendenhall because it puts versatile athletes on the field with three safeties that can all play the pass and get downhill to stop the run, depending on the particular call for a given down. Moore fits well because he can move well in space and he’s a good tackler against the run. Plus, he’s physical enough even at 6’0” and 210 pounds that he doesn’t get bullied in matchups with tight ends or big backs.

Then there’s the fact that Moore brings a lot of versatility to the job. He’s someone that knows the job for all of the safety spots in the scheme, making it possible to shift spots around and change calls accordingly. That versatility makes him an important member of the defense as Mendenhall figures out how to deploy the “best 11” for each situation the defense may face. Moore is also a likely starter on special teams for units like the punt coverage team.

“He can play any of the three and knows any of the three – if it was only he and whoever else there, that’s the equivalent of a two deep even though it’s one player,” Mendenhall said.

But being a versatile player and having a high pick in the jersey draft doesn’t guarantee anyone playing time. That’s something you have to earn as Mendenhall frequently reminds the team. At safety, that’s not an easy task.

At safety, the Cavaliers feature senior Juan Thornhill, a third-team All-ACC cornerback last season, Brenton Nelson, the 2017 ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year, and Joey Blount, a rising standout for the Wahoos that had a big role on special teams as a true freshman a year ago. With Moore, that’s four players capable of starting and contributing from those safety spots.

The competition is challenging everyone in the position group to play better.

“I actually think it’s raising everyone’s performance,” Moore said. “It’s day by day … [and] we all know the best man is going to go on the field so it makes everyone play higher.”

The “99 Virginia Football Thoughts Before Kickoff” series has discussed much more. The previous articles are below. Click away.

• No. 99 – The Importance Of A Fast Start
• No. 98 – The Impact Of Early-Ending Careers
• No. 97 – Jordan Mack’s Role
• No. 96 – Welcome Back
• No. 95 – Han Solo Says
• No. 94 – Smart Addition
• No. 93 – The Center Spot
• No. 92 – Finding A Punt Returner
• No. 91 – Facing Running Quarterbacks
• No. 90 – Interceptions
• No. 89 – Kickoff Times
• No. 88 – QB Optimism Not Enough To Tilt Early Predictions Too Far
• No. 87 – It Starts With Jordan Ellis
• No. 86 – Virginia’s Most Dangerous Game
• No. 85 – The Tight End Swan Song?
• No. 84 – Teach A Man To Fish
• No. 83 – No Ordinary Joe
• No. 82 – Now Or Then
• No. 81 – How To Treat The Kickoff Rule Change
• No. 80 – Play, But Still Redshirt
• No. 79 – Which Red Zone Offense Is The Real One?
• No. 78 – Schedule For Success
• No. 77 – Who’s The Worst?
• No. 76 – ACC Coach Rankings
• No. 75 – Keep That Cold Weather Gear
• No. 74 – 1,000 Target For OZ
• No. 73 – Cross Out Cross-Training For Cross
• No. 72 – Punting Plans
• No. 71 – Redshirted … Ready?
• No. 70 – A June Jolt
• No. 69 – Who?
• No. 68 – Stops To Start Second Half
• No. 67 – Root, Root, Root For …
• No. 66 – Wildcard Extras
• No. 65 – Defense Showed Red Zone Improvement
• No. 64 – Welcome Back, Mr. Robinson
• No. 63 – The Florida Footprint
• No. 62 – True Freshmen Will Play, But Who Will Make The Most Impact?
• No. 61 – Four Fireworks-Worthy Moments In The Bronco Mendenhall Era
• No. 60 – Juan Thornhill Primed For An All-ACC Caliber Season
• No. 59 – Rebuilding The Offensive Line Is On Schedule
• No. 58 – Bouncing Back On The Defensive Line
• No. 57 – Underrated Hoos
• No. 56 – Lordy, Lordy, How ‘Bout 40?
• No. 55 – Peace Talk
• No. 54 – Hoos’ Handle On Social Media Bodes Well For Future Recruiting
• No. 53 – Filling The Void At Wide Receiver
• No. 52 – The Sixth-Year Seniors
• No. 51 – Borrowing A Burning Question
• No. 50 – Beat Tech!
• No. 49 – A Resolute Leader
• No. 48 – The Perkins Theorem
• No. 47 – Beat Pitt!
• No. 46 – A Look At Virginia Football’s 2018 Walk-On Class
• No. 45 – I Sense A Trend
• No. 44 – The Need For (More) Speed
• No. 43 – Progress With Penalties
• No. 42 – Preseason All-ACC Musings
• No. 41 – Designing Sacks
• No. 40 – Go Long
• No. 39 – Please Stay Healthy!
• No. 38 – Sorting Out The Secondary
• No. 37 – Preseason Injury Report Concerns
• No. 36 – The Third Down Swap
• No. 35 – The Last Time
• No. 34 – More Rushing Options
• No. 33 – Opponents Say
• No. 32 – Preseason Practice Watch List
• No. 31 – Snowden Emerging
• No. 30 – Deja Vu With Dubois?
• No. 29 – Reduce Opponents’ Explosive Touchdowns
• No. 28 – Nelson’s Encore
• No. 27 – Ranking The Positions On Offense From Strongest To Weakest
• No. 26 – Hold On To That Ball Petey!
• No. 25 – R.J., The Elder
• No. 24 – Bratton’s Road Of Resilience
• No. 23 – Tag Team Linebacker
• No. 22 – Numbers Begin To Fill In
• No. 21 – Ranking The Positions On Defense From Strongest To Weakest
• No. 20 – Eli’s Gold
• No. 19 – Covering Punts
• No. 18 – I Need A Sub!
• No. 17 – Is Mejia The Answer Virginia Needs At Place-Kicker?
• No. 16 – More Position Changes In Store For The First Years?