# Leonard Moore (American football)
**Leonard Moore** is an [American football](https://www.edgepedia.org/american-football) cornerback for the [Notre Dame Fighting Irish](https://www.edgepedia.org/notre-dame-fighting-irish), considered one of the top prospects for the 2027 NFL Draft. A 6-foot-2, roughly 195-pound defender from [Round Rock, Texas](https://www.edgepedia.org/round-rock-texas), he became a starter as a true freshman in 2024, earned unanimous All-American recognition in 2025, and enters the 2027 draft cycle ranked among the top five players on major draft boards.[1](https://apnews.com/article/f0a2aa9aa723b453d0015ee197c8ff6f) • [2](https://www.pff.com/news/draft-leonard-moore-notre-dame-scouting-profile) He should not be confused with the 1987 Minnesota Vikings running back of the same name or with the Hall of Fame Colts back Lenny Moore (born Leonard Edward Moore).[3](https://www.nfl.com/players/leonard-moore/stats/) • [4](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/M/MoorLe00.htm)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Position, size | Cornerback, Notre Dame; 6-2, 195-197 lbs, from Round Rock, Texas[1](https://apnews.com/article/f0a2aa9aa723b453d0015ee197c8ff6f) • [5](https://scoutszn.com/player/3884?tab=overview) |
| 2024 (true freshman) | 15 games, 48 tackles, 11 pass breakups, 2 interceptions[5](https://scoutszn.com/player/3884?tab=overview) |
| 2025 (true sophomore) | 10 games, 31 tackles, 5 interceptions (team lead, tied for seventh nationally), 7 pass breakups, 1 forced fumble[6](https://fightingirish.com/sports/football/roster/player/leonard-moore) • [5](https://scoutszn.com/player/3884?tab=overview) |
| 2025 honors | Unanimous All-American, consensus All-American, Jim Thorpe Award finalist, Bronko Nagurski Trophy finalist[6](https://fightingirish.com/sports/football/roster/player/leonard-moore) |
| Coverage production | 91.8 PFF overall grade in 2025, the highest among college cornerbacks; 45.1 passer rating allowed when targeted[2](https://www.pff.com/news/draft-leonard-moore-notre-dame-scouting-profile) |
| Draft standing | Fifth overall on PFF's 2027 Big Board, expected top-10 selection; consensus top cornerback in the class[2](https://www.pff.com/news/draft-leonard-moore-notre-dame-scouting-profile) |
| Recruiting | Rated a three-star recruit by PFF's account of his recruiting reports; ScoutSZN lists him as a four-star recruit, national No. 432[2](https://www.pff.com/news/draft-leonard-moore-notre-dame-scouting-profile) • [5](https://scoutszn.com/player/3884?tab=overview) |
## College career
**2024.** Moore joined Notre Dame as a member of the 2024 recruiting class and stepped into the starting lineup as a true freshman when top cornerback Benjamin Morrison suffered a season-ending injury; PFF's evaluation judged Moore to be an upgrade in the role.[2](https://www.pff.com/news/draft-leonard-moore-notre-dame-scouting-profile) Over 15 games he recorded 48 tackles, 11 pass breakups, and 2 interceptions.[5](https://scoutszn.com/player/3884?tab=overview) • [7](https://www.theringer.com/todd-mcshay/2027/players/leonard-moore)
**2025.** In his sophomore season Moore turned coverage into takeaways, recording 5 interceptions in 10 games to lead Notre Dame, a total tied for seventh-most in the country, along with 31 tackles, 7 pass breakups, and a forced fumble.[6](https://fightingirish.com/sports/football/roster/player/leonard-moore) Against Boise State on October 4 he had two interceptions and a forced fumble, his first career multi-interception game and the first multi-INT game by an Irish player since 2023, earning Walter Camp FBS Defensive Player of the Week and Jim Thorpe Award defensive back of the week honors.[6](https://fightingirish.com/sports/football/roster/player/leonard-moore) He scored his first career touchdown on a pick-six against Syracuse on November 22, 2025.[6](https://fightingirish.com/sports/football/roster/player/leonard-moore) • [8](https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/2027-nfl-draft-summer-scouting-162800407.html) The season brought unanimous and consensus All-American recognition and finalist standing for the Jim Thorpe Award and the Bronko Nagurski Trophy.[6](https://fightingirish.com/sports/football/roster/player/leonard-moore) His 91.8 PFF overall grade was the highest among all college cornerbacks, and quarterbacks posted a passer rating of just 45.1 when targeting him.[2](https://www.pff.com/news/draft-leonard-moore-notre-dame-scouting-profile)
**2026.** Moore entered the season on the AP preseason [All-America](https://www.edgepedia.org/all-america) first team, the Jim Thorpe Award watch list, and the Walter Camp Player of the Year watch list.[9](https://apnews.com/article/35afa7cb3f15918ad16d7d52d9b2cb51) • [5](https://scoutszn.com/player/3884?tab=overview) PFF reported that opponents made it a priority to avoid his side of the field, and it anticipated a quieter final season as offenses schemed toward the opposite corner.[2](https://www.pff.com/news/draft-leonard-moore-notre-dame-scouting-profile) Through his first four games of 2026, ScoutSZN recorded 8 tackles and 4 passes defensed with no interceptions, including 5 tackles and 1 pass defensed in a 41-13 win over Wisconsin on September 6.[5](https://scoutszn.com/player/3884?tab=overview) • [10](https://scoutinggrade.com/2027/players/leonard-moore)
## Playing style
Moore lines up almost exclusively on the perimeter as a boundary corner, with some experience at nickel and a few snaps at safety, and scouting reports describe a classic free-safety frame that could be used there later in a career.[11](https://lastwordonsports.com/nfl/2026/05/25/leonard-moore/) His game is built on length, patience, route recognition, and ball skills: he stays square, reads the receiver's stem, and contests throws at the catch point without grabbing.[12](https://www.footballscout365.com/post/leonard-moore-2027-nfl-draft-scouting-report)
**Man coverage is the foundation of his profile.** Six of his seven career interceptions and 17 of his 23 forced incompletions have come in man coverage, and his missed-tackle rate drops from 33 percent in zone coverage to 7 percent in man-to-man situations.[2](https://www.pff.com/news/draft-leonard-moore-notre-dame-scouting-profile) The fit is mutual: Notre Dame head coach [Marcus Freeman](https://www.edgepedia.org/marcus-freeman) calls Cover 1 (defense with one deep safety and man-to-man coverage) on 42 percent of defensive snaps, the second-highest rate in the FBS, because the scheme suits Moore's strength at playing with outside leverage, cutting off out-breaking routes and funneling receivers toward deep help.[2](https://www.pff.com/news/draft-leonard-moore-notre-dame-scouting-profile) He also took the second-most press snaps of any FBS defensive back in the 2025 season and surrendered 30 or more receiving yards in a game exactly once.[5](https://scoutszn.com/player/3884?tab=overview)
His performance varies with safety positioning: PFF measured a 94.0 coverage grade and 35.2 passer rating allowed with the middle of the field closed, against a 78.3 grade and 87.1 passer rating allowed with the middle open.[2](https://www.pff.com/news/draft-leonard-moore-notre-dame-scouting-profile) Reported concerns are consistent across evaluations: functional strength and press physicality still developing, inconsistent run-support force, and tackling reliability in space.[12](https://www.footballscout365.com/post/leonard-moore-2027-nfl-draft-scouting-report) • [5](https://scoutszn.com/player/3884?tab=overview) Multiple scouting services compare his archetype to [Patrick Surtain II](https://www.edgepedia.org/patrick-surtain-ii), a long press corner who converts coverage into takeaways, while noting Surtain entered the NFL with a denser frame.[12](https://www.footballscout365.com/post/leonard-moore-2027-nfl-draft-scouting-report) • [5](https://scoutszn.com/player/3884?tab=overview)
## Draft outlook
Moore is the consensus top cornerback prospect in the 2027 draft class. PFF ranks him fifth overall on its Big Board and expects a top-10 selection; Football Scout 365 grades him in its Elite tier with top-five potential; ScoutSZN grades him 9.2, Round 1 caliber, at No. 2 among cornerbacks and No. 14 overall.[2](https://www.pff.com/news/draft-leonard-moore-notre-dame-scouting-profile) • [12](https://www.footballscout365.com/post/leonard-moore-2027-nfl-draft-scouting-report) • [5](https://scoutszn.com/player/3884?tab=overview) PFF notes he would have been an easy top-10 selection in the 2026 NFL Draft had he been eligible, and describes him as one of the best true man-coverage cornerbacks to enter the draft in some time, an ideal fit for man-heavy defenses such as those of the [Cleveland Browns](https://www.edgepedia.org/cleveland-browns), Chicago Bears, and [Los Angeles Rams](https://www.edgepedia.org/los-angeles-rams).[2](https://www.pff.com/news/draft-leonard-moore-notre-dame-scouting-profile) His reported representation is Excel Sports Management.[5](https://scoutszn.com/player/3884?tab=overview)
## References
1. [Big Ten puts 10 on AP All-America first team, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/f0a2aa9aa723b453d0015ee197c8ff6f)
2. [2027 NFL Draft Prospect Preview: CB Leonard Moore, Notre Dame, PFF](https://www.pff.com/news/draft-leonard-moore-notre-dame-scouting-profile)
3. [Leonard Moore Stats Summary, NFL.com](https://www.nfl.com/players/leonard-moore/stats/)
4. [Lenny Moore Stats, Pro-Football-Reference](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/M/MoorLe00.htm)
5. [Leonard Moore Scouting Report & Draft Grade, ScoutSZN](https://scoutszn.com/player/3884?tab=overview)
6. [Leonard Moore, Football Roster, Notre Dame Fighting Irish Official Athletics Website](https://fightingirish.com/sports/football/roster/player/leonard-moore)
7. [Leonard Moore Draft Profile & Scouting Report, The Ringer (Todd McShay)](https://www.theringer.com/todd-mcshay/2027/players/leonard-moore)
8. [2027 NFL Draft Summer Scouting Report: Leonard Moore, Yahoo Sports](https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/2027-nfl-draft-summer-scouting-162800407.html)
9. [No. 1 Texas, No. 2 Penn St each place 3 players on AP preseason All-America first team, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/35afa7cb3f15918ad16d7d52d9b2cb51)
10. [Leonard Moore Scouting Report, Scouting Grade](https://scoutinggrade.com/2027/players/leonard-moore)
11. [Leonard Moore Early Scouting Report, Last Word on Sports](https://lastwordonsports.com/nfl/2026/05/25/leonard-moore/)
12. [Leonard Moore 2027 NFL Draft Scouting Report, Football Scout 365](https://www.footballscout365.com/post/leonard-moore-2027-nfl-draft-scouting-report)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Other team and ball sports › Rugby and other football codes › American football players, coaches, and executives › Cornerbacks*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 11, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license