Senior safety Rod Moore will be down for the foreseeable future as he continues to heal from an ACL injury he suffered during a Wolverines’ practice. But once he returns to the field, Moore will be considered one of the top safeties in college football.
The Clayton (OH) Northmont native made an impact as a true freshman at Michigan registering 33 tackles. He took a major step forward in his sophomore year and had 71 tackles with four interceptions as a leader in the secondary. Moore started the 2023 season banged up and missed some time, but he still managed to have 38 tackles, three pass deflections, and two interceptions during his junior year.
Moore could’ve opted to enter the 2024 NFL Draft, but chose to come back for his senior year to boost his draft stock — along with win with his teammates. Even though Moore suffered a major injury, the national audience still views him as a top player in ’24.
Pro Football Focus put together their top 10 safeties in 2024 and Moore was on the list.
PFF ranked Moore as the No. 7 safety in college football.
Moore had a relatively down junior season (71.3 PFF grade) compared to what he did as a sophomore (83.9 PFF grade). However, he still has been the sixth-most valuable returning Power Five safety over the past two years according to PFF’s wins above average metric. His six interceptions in that stretch are tied for third in that same group.
Unfortunately, he won’t have much of an opportunity to rebound in his senior campaign as he just recently tore his ACL in practice. He’ll still be a leader of Michigan’s defense from the sidelines until he can get back onto the field, which might not happen until later in the season.
Without Moore to begin the season, Michigan still will have plenty of talent. Makari Paige and Quinten Johnson are back. The Wolverines also went out and grabbed Tennessee transfer Wesley Walker and Michigan State safety Jaden Mangham. Michigan has four quality safeties to help fill the void until Moore can make his return to the field.
