Leonard Moore
Notre Dame's offense gets the headlines, but its best player might be the corner nobody throws at. As a sophomore, Leonard Moore was a unanimous All-American -- and he's back.
Notre Dame's offense gets the headlines, but its best player might be the corner nobody throws at. As a sophomore, Leonard Moore was a unanimous All-American — and he's back.
First-team by all five selectors after five interceptions (including a pick-six) and twelve pass breakups in just ten games — second in the country in picks per game. PFF graded him the No. 1 Power-Four corner in coverage (92.6) and the No. 1 defensive back overall (92.0). He's the rare prospect with elite man-AND-zone technique plus the ball production that usually belongs to only one or the other — the anchor of a secondary that ranked fourth nationally with 21 interceptions. He could have been a high pick; instead it's only his junior year. The forward stakes are a title: Notre Dame's offense has Carr, and its defense has the best cover corner in the country to roll everything else around. The only thing capping his numbers is that quarterbacks have started looking the other way — and the 2026 question is whether the lockdown corner becomes the one who closes a championship.
How he plays
Moore is the rarest thing at the position: a corner who erases in man, robs in zone, and produces the ball — usually you get one. PFF graded him the No. 1 Power-Four corner in coverage; he backed it with five interceptions and a dozen breakups in ten games, the production of a gambler paired with technique that never gambles. Watch the mirror: he rides a receiver's hip through the break, then locates the ball like a receiver himself. He's a true island corner — the kind that lets a defense leave him alone and send its help everywhere else. There's no obvious hole to attack, which is the point: the only thing limiting his stat line is that quarterbacks have started avoiding his side entirely.
The story
First-team by all five selectors after five interceptions (including a pick-six) and twelve pass breakups in just ten games -- second in the country in picks per game. PFF graded him the No. 1 Power-Four corner in coverage (92.6) and the No. 1 defensive back overall (92.0). He's the rare prospect with elite man-AND-zone technique plus the ball production that usually belongs to only one or the other -- the anchor of a secondary that ranked fourth nationally with 21 interceptions. He could have been a high pick; instead it's only his junior year. The forward stakes are a title: Notre Dame's offense has Carr, and its defense has the best cover corner in the country to roll everything else around. The only thing capping his numbers is that quarterbacks have started looking the other way -- and the 2026 question is whether the lockdown corner becomes the one who closes a championship.
Career Arc
Trophy Case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-AMERICA · UNANIMOUS
Unanimous AA (2025)
Named to 11 first-team selectors
2025 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
Splits & context
Supporting Cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Marcus Freeman
Awards
Player Standing · 17 rungs
Tier 4 · EliteR14 · Unanimous All-American
Unanimous All-American. First-team on every major selector list.
Recognition
Production
Trophy Case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-AMERICA · UNANIMOUS
Unanimous AA (2025)
Named to 11 first-team selectors
Career stats
| Season | Team | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Notre Dame | 31 | 23 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 7 | 5 | -- |
| 2024 | Notre Dame | 48 | 34 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 11 | 2 | -- |
| Career | 79 | 57 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 18 | 7 | -- |
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 8 · 2025
W 34–24
vs USC
3 TOT · 2 SOLO
How he plays
Play style
Moore is the rarest thing at the position: a corner who erases in man, robs in zone, and produces the ball -- usually you get one. PFF graded him the No. 1 Power-Four corner in coverage; he backed it with five interceptions and a dozen breakups in ten games, the production of a gambler paired with technique that never gambles. Watch the mirror: he rides a receiver's hip through the break, then locates the ball like a receiver himself. He's a true island corner -- the kind that lets a defense leave him alone and send its help everywhere else. There's no obvious hole to attack, which is the point: the only thing limiting his stat line is that quarterbacks have started avoiding his side entirely.
Our classifier reads him the same way: reads the quarterback's eyes and takes the ball away.
2026 Outlook
Notre Dame
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Cornerback · Notre Dame
Returning around him
- 6 Notre Dame players drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: -8 net (7 in / 15 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Notre Dame · Last season: 10-2 (AP #9) · Talent rank #9 · 2026 recruiting class #5
Perception vs tape
First-team by all five selectors after five interceptions (including a pick-six) and twelve pass breakups in just ten games -- second in the country in picks per game. PFF graded him the No.
Read the story →DNA match
Player DNA
Ball Hawk
Reads the quarterback's eyes and takes the ball away.
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Joey Porter Jr.’s 2022 season.
Matches Joey on
Differs from Joey on
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to Kaleb Martin's sophomore season at Miami (OH) (2025).
Matches Kaleb on