 |
 |   |
|
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Multimedia Central Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities Work in Sports
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE |  |
No small feat Moore overcomes lack of size to win Lombardi Award
Posted: Thursday December 09, 1999 01:30 PM
HOUSTON (AP) -- Virginia Tech defensive line coach Charley Wiles doesn't expect to see a player like Hokies defensive end Corey Moore again. Moore, a blend of speed and strength, was once labeled too small to play big-time college football, but he emerged Wednesday night with the 30th Lombardi Award as the nation's top collegiate lineman. "Combined with his physical attributes, he has the overwhelming will to win, and he's such a leader," Wiles said. "You may go through your entire coaching life and not coach a player like Corey." Moore won the Mike Fox-Bronko Nagurski Trophy as the nation's top defender on Monday. For the Lombardi, he beat out Florida State nose guard Corey Simon, and defensive end Courtney Brown and linebacker LaVar Arrington of Penn State. "A lot of schools recruited me out of high school, but a lot of them thought I was too small to compete in Division I-A football," Moore said. "To have been able to come to Virginia Tech and have a career here, I've been blessed with that opportunity." Moore made the Hokies glad they took him. Moore led the Big East with 17 sacks for 132 yards this season. He dropped 11 runners for 47 yards in losses. "I want to thank the Virginia Tech program for giving me the opportunity to play and develop as the football player I am today," Moore said. "Coach (Frank) Beamer took a chance bringing me to Tech. I'd like to thank him for that. "I'm always motivated when people tell me I can't do something. Size doesn't matter. You can't measure the size of a person's heart. In life, I don't think anybody has a bigger heart than me. I can't wait to show my heart on a football field." At 6-foot, 225 pounds, Moore isn't the prototype college defensive end, but he fit well in the Hokies' defensive scheme. He came to Virginia Tech from Brownsville, Tenn., weighing 200 pounds. "In our defensive scheme, we don't ask Corey to line up over the offensive tackle," Wiles said. "We put Corey outside so he can use his speed and strength. He makes the offensive tackle operate in space." Moore has been clocked at 4.3 in the 40-yard dash and bench presses 400 pounds. "I got into coaching because of the relationships my coaches had with me made me want to have the opportunity to make a difference in a young man's life," Wiles said. "Then, here comes Corey and he's the guy who touched me." Moore will lead the second-ranked Hokies into the Sugar Bowl Jan. 4 against No. 1 ranked Florida State for the national championship. Arrington and Brown's selection as finalists marked the first school in 20 years to have two Lombardi finalists in the same year. Penn State also had Matt Millen and winner Bruce Clark in 1978. Former Texas A&M linebacker Dat Nguyen won the 1998 award.
| ||||||||||||||||
