Around this time of the year, Central Valley Christian-Visalia sophomore Jaden Moore would normally be in the midst of the football season, with basketball in the back of his mind.
Instead, like most student-athletes in California, he is anxiously waiting for the season to resume, and while Covid-19 has sidelined official competition, Moore’s ambition to get better is still in game mode.
The dual-sport athlete has been working out with Bryce Harris, a former Fresno State offensive tackle that was a journeyman in the NFL.
“I have been working out constantly and getting stronger and faster,” Moore said. “I have been working on my skills and learning from Harris.”
The 6-foot-3, 203-pound defensive end finally got the opportunity to showcase his talent at the National Preps Collegiate Showcase held in Fresno on Sept. 26.
“I felt great to be back to a camp again and get back on the field,” said Moore, who was one of 400 players invited to the Fresno event. “I miss it. The field and the courts are like my second home.”
Moore added that he was happy he got to showcase his size and speed, but notes that he still has a long way to go in other areas.
“I feel like I can improve on my hands and my footwork,” Moore said. “I’m working on making my get off as explosive as I can.”
Like most student-athletes, Moore has a desire to play at the collegiate level. He has not received any offers yet, but he said that Oregon State and UCLA have reportedly shown in interest in him. The University of Oregon is also one of his top destinations.
Although he was not chosen as the Defensive Line MVP, an honor that went to fellow CIF Central Section standout and Wyoming-committed Garces Memorial-Bakersfield senior defensive lineman JJ Uphold, he impressed the National Preps coaches and staff enough to be named to the Top 100 performers list, and one of only three defensive lineman to be rated a Major D1 prospect along with Uphold and sophomore Tovie Martin of Clovis.
“Jaedon Moore is super long and super athletic and a great basketball player that started on varsity in both sports as a freshman,” said National Preps Western Region College Football Scout Trent Herzog, who is also the head football coach at St. Vincent de Paul in Petaluma. “He has big-time potential and could end up being a rush end or an outside linebacker at the next level.”
A good showing in the National Preps Showcase and having a solid football season can certainly get the dice rolling for him.
With the California Interscholastic Federation pushing back its start date for football to Dec. 14 in order to not conflict with end of semester academic testing, Moore will be back in action delighting the Central Valley Christian faithful fairly soon.
