DeAndre Moore Jr. injury update: Texas WR leaves game in third quarter vs. San Jose State

Texas is handling business against San Jose State in Week 2, but a concerning moment came to light during the third quarter. Wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. went down with an injury. He was taken to the medical tent.

Losing Moore for any period of time would be detrimental for the Longhorns. He broke out in a huge way in 2024, catching seven touchdowns for Texas, and while he was quiet in Week 1, he caught four passes for 30 yards before heading to the tent against the Spartans.

NFL Draft analyst Todd McShay is a huge fan of Moore, believing he could be a name to watch for the 2026 NFL Draft. He ranked him amongst his top seven receivers for the NFL Draft on ‘The McShay Show’ earlier this offseason.

“Interesting. He’s an interesting cat,” McShay said. “Like, limited on special teams as a freshman, 2023. Last year, with Matthew Golden, Gunnar Helm, Isaiah Bond who was up and down, more down than up. They’re all gone, though, and he still was third on the team, only 39 catches, 456 yards, 11.7 (yards per catch), and seven touchdowns. He’s a slot receiver for me, and that’s what he was for Coach Sark last year.”

As of now, McShay sees pro-level speed and quickness with Moore. That’s something that reflected from the tape over and over, which might limit where he can line up but are traits that certainly won’t hurt him in college or the next level.

“I’m not saying he doesn’t have inside-out potential. He’s 6’0, 195. Estimated like 4.44, something like mid-4.4s, okay,” McShay said. “Positives, what jumped out? Sharp. Sudden off the line of scrimmage. Uncovers quickly. Reaches top gear quickly. I watched him run past the Mississippi State DB. I was like, ‘Oh, great. Show me someone good’. Then he did it to Florida’s DB, you know what I mean…So I got to see, like, the true, on-field speed.

“I think he’s really agile, light on his feet. It’s like, he’s got that suddenness you’re looking for. Really good acceleration out of his breaks, which is critical to me in terms of separating in the NFL, college alike.

“At his best versus single coverage. I don’t think he’s savvy enough yet in terms of, like, zone, understanding. He’s just, I’m faster than you, I’m more agile than you, I’m a better athlete than you. They’re going to hide me in the slot. If you want to move your perimeter corner inside here, then you’ve got to cover Matthew Golden or somebody out there. So I’m probably going to get a nickel, occasionally I’m going to get a free, right, and so I’m just like, mano a mano, right.

“It’s going to be interesting to see, now that he is the guy, or is projected to be and should be the guy if not one of the top two guys, is it just from the slot, can he do it on the outside versus perimeter corners? But the tape doesn’t like that he’s got the agility, the quickness, the suddenness, the acceleration – both out of cuts and off the line of scrimmage.”

Hopefully Moore is all right and can get back on the field in short order. He’ll be a major piece for Texas over the next couple of months if he’s healthy.

— On3’s Sam Gillenwater contributed to this article.