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GOLD AND BLACK ILLUSTRATED VOLUME 28, ISSUE 4 58 then committed to Purdue during the national NBC broad- cast of the U.S. Army All-American Bowl Jan. 6. Even when he was aligned with the Longhorns, Moore felt a pull to Purdue because of Jeff Brohm — Purdue's head coach and his brothers had starred at Trinity, as well — Brohm's offense and the way he uses slot receivers. "Purdue has always been a factor," he said. The Rivals.com three-star prospect brings an element the Boilermakers have lacked in recent seasons, in that he's a dynamic, fast playmaker. Moore has documented 4.33 speed in the 40-yard dash, a trait he displayed often at Trinity, where he averaged 274 all-purpose yards per game as a senior. "He's legitimate and can really run," Brohm said. Speed sets the 5-foot-9, 195-pound Moore apart now, just as it did years ago. Back when Ricketts brought her preemie son back home, at a time when it would have been expected for him to be a little slower in his physical development, he wasn't interested in taking time. Instead, Moore started hitting all those early childhood development markers — lifting his head, looking around, rolling around — at the pace of his peers. "When he started being real nosy, we started doing all those (development) things, we started working with him then, working on his strength," Ricketts said. "It was amazing. … We taught him to do things kind of fast, we pushed him to the limit to see, 'You can do this. You're going to do this.' Yes, he's really special. "He was one of those strong babies. He was strong; he wanted to stand up. He was something then and is some- thing now." Although Moore certainly isn't the tallest receiver — that 5-9 listing might be an inch or two generous — he's solidly put together. "For a guy who maybe isn't 6-2, he's very explosive," Brohm said. "He's strong in his lower body and strong in the weight room and is a little bit farther along for what you would expect from a young receiver." Over the years, Moore's want-to seldom waned. He tried multiple sports during his youth, landing on football Kyle Charters Mom Quincy Ricketts (left) thought Moore was special at a young age, particularly after some complications at birth.