Notre Dame cornerback Leonard Moore wins multiple national awards for 2-INT game vs. Boise State

Notre Dame sophomore cornerback Leonard Moore returned from a two-game absence on Saturday against Boise State. He played, according to multiple weekly awards, like the best defensive back — and even best defensive player — in the country.

Moore was named the Walter Camp FBS Defensive Player of the Week and the Thorpe Award Defensive Back of the Week for his performance against the Broncos, the Irish announced earlier this week. Those go to the nation’s top defensive player and top defensive back, respectively.

Moore picked off Boise State quarterback Maddux Madsen twice during Notre Dame’s Week 6 victory, once during the third quarter and once during the fourth. He also made 6 tackles and forced a fumble, which the Broncos recovered.

Irish head coach Marcus Freeman said before the game that Moore, who suffered a high-ankle sprain during Notre Dame’s Week 3 loss to Texas A&M and missed wins over Purdue and Arkansas, would not be 100 percent in his return. He said after the game that the reigning FWAA Freshman Defensive Player of the Year was limited in practice during the week.

He sure looked healthy, hauling in both interceptions while in man coverage on Boise State wide receivers.

“It shows you he’s a special player,” Freeman said. “I don’t want to say this too loud because we’ve got players in here, but practice is important, and we preach how important practice is.

“Leonard got enough work that he can go out there and do his job. And it’s just a confidence, I think, that we as a coaching staff, the team has, when he’s out there.”

Freeman said Monday that Moore’s presence on the field gives both his teammates and defensive coordinator Chris Ash an elevated sense of confidence that they didn’t have when he went down.

He’s gonna take care of the boundary, right? You can play different coverages, but if you need to play man, you got a lot of faith in, ‘Hey, Leonard, take care of him, play man.’

“And I’m not saying we can’t do it with other guys, but there’s a confidence that if you’re gonna throw it to a guy Leonard is covering man to man, there’s a chance that he might intercept that ball or that’s not gonna be a completion.”

Moore has exceeded his 2024 interception total in just three games, bringing him to 5 picks and 3 forced fumbles for his career. His role at Notre Dame may get even more valuable moving forward, too.

The Irish have floated the idea of letting Moore shadow the opponent’s best receiver all game, as opposed to leaving him on the boundary. Moore Island might start traveling as Notre Dame faces NC State on Saturday and USC — who features the Power Four’s receiving yards leader in junior wideout Makai Lemon — on Oct. 18.