How Isaiah Moore’s experience at Cardinal Gibbons set the foundation for his stint as NC State’s interim linebackers coach

By Noah Fleischman

Isaiah Moore walked into NC State’s Close-King Indoor Practice Facility lobby with a wide smile. Dressed in a black short sleeve sweatshirt with a script Wolfpack logo, a red long sleeve underneath to match his sweatpants and a baseball cap, Moore’s outfit signaled the next step of his football journey. 

The last time he stood at the same podium, he was one of the Wolfpack’s defensive leaders on the field — a three-time recipient of the No. 1 jersey, which is hand picked by coach Dave Doeren for a player that embodies what it means to be on the team. But this time, he didn’t have to worry about taking off his helmet or pads. 

Moore, who spent time with the Kansas City Chiefs after going undrafted in 2023, saw his playing days come to an end through injury. Although that cut his football career short, Moore quickly pivoted. He returned to NC State to join the Pack’s recruiting staff in a part-time role before helping the team’s defense as an extra set of eyes this fall. 

Now, after gaining experience under defensive coordinator Tony Gibson, who left to become Marshall’s head coach earlier this month, Moore was elevated to NC State’s interim linebackers coach for its Military Bowl appearance against East Carolina on Dec. 28.

“I don’t take it for granted. It’s a big responsibility, and I do think I’m ready for it,” Moore said after the Pack’s second practice in his new role. “It definitely means a lot to me. What better opportunity to be able to coach at your university, the position you played under the coach you played for. There’s no other story that you could tell.”

While Moore, 25, is one of the youngest position coaches in all of FBS for the month in his acting role, this isn’t a coincidence that Doeren picked him to lead the position group he played in just as recently as two seasons ago. He was meant to be in front of that meeting room.

“He loves this sport, he loves the program, so it was a natural [fit],” Doeren said. “I knew when he was a player, when it was time, that this is where we’d want him — somewhere in our program helping us win.”

Even though he is just a couple seasons removed from playing, Moore isn’t inexperienced when it comes to coaching. A full season as an assistant coach at nearby Cardinal Gibbons High, which is situated across the street from Carter-Finley Stadium, during his NC State career prepared Moore for this moment. 

That brief time on staff with the Crusaders provided a window into what Moore is like as a coach, and why some believe he’s a rising star in the coaching profession. 

‘He was a natural’

Cardinal Gibbons coach Steven Wright received a text message from Doeren ahead of the 2021 spring season, which was rescheduled from the previous fall due to the COVID-19 pandemic, about Moore. The All-ACC linebacker needed hands-on experience for a class, and he connected with Wright to see if joining the Crusaders’ staff would be the right fit. 

Wright, who took over the Cardinal Gibbons program in 2011, was more than happy to bring Moore onto his staff, but he wasn’t sure what to expect at first. While the linebacker excelled on the football field as a player, would that translate into coaching high schoolers?

It didn’t take long for that to be validated. 

Wright allowed Moore to take the linebackers and make them his own, alongside assistant Matthias Gurdak. Wright was prepared to assist Moore on the first day of practice, so he spent most of his time floating near the linebackers. But he soon realized that he wasn’t needed. 

“He was a natural,” Wright recalled of Moore’s first practice as a coach. “He just stepped right in and it was like he had been doing it for 10 years. It was pretty remarkable.”

Wright, a longtime physical education teacher at the school, wondered if Moore was just trying to impress him on the first day, so he observed the linebackers again the following practice. It was the same result that day, the next and so on. 

Moore commanded the group with the same infectious energy that he played with on the field with the Wolfpack, while he was meticulously prepared. He knew what he wanted to teach each day, finding ways to effectively communicate that to the lesser-experienced linebackers, eager to glean information from the collegiate standout. 

The Cardinal Gibbons players took to Moore’s coaching. He could relate to each of them, just four years removed from playing at the same level himself.  And it paid off. Moore, who would arrive to the Crusaders’ practices after his own during the Wolfpack’s spring workout schedule, helped guide the defense to the NCHSAA 4A state championship game. 

Even though Cardinal Gibbons lost to Julius Chambers that season, Moore’s coaching acumen stood out — both during practice and with his ability to make quick in-game adjustments. Moore was able to quickly diagnose what an opposing offense was trying to do and then used that information to come up with a plan to attack it with the other defensive coaches. That was different, especially from a 23-year-old first-time coach. 

“His knowledge of the game, his maturity, they speak for themselves,” Gurdak said. “I didn’t know what to expect, but was pleasantly surprised. I learned things from him even though he was coming on to help us. It was a great experience.”

While Moore was on staff, in theory to satisfy a class requirement, he did not treat it that way. This wasn’t just to show up, check the box and go home. No, he was there to make an impact on those he was around. 

“He immediately invested himself in what we were doing,” Wright said. “He invested himself in our players. That just speaks to the type of person he is. I think he came over here like he was coaching at NC State.”

“He genuinely loved our kids and poured himself into their lives.”

Moore, who seemed to enjoy his time on Cardinal Gibbons’ staff, returned for the 2021 fall postseason once NC State’s campaign ended. The Wolfpack was in bowl practices, but Moore was able to balance that with the Crusaders’ playoff practice and game schedule. And that time, the postseason ended in a slightly different fashion.

Cardinal Gibbons claimed the state title with a 14-2 win over Chambers inside NC State’s Carter-Finley Stadium, just seven months removed from falling short in the spring. Wright credited Moore, who was there on his own time and for no other reason than he wanted to help on a volunteer basis, as being key in the program’s first state title as it snapped Chambers’ bid for a three-peat. 

“He was that piece to help get us over the top on the defensive side of the ball,” Wright said. 

Moore, who hadn’t coached in organized football until the 2021 spring season, proved he belonged in the profession whenever his playing days ended. Gurdak, who played at Tennessee and was a graduate assistant at West Virginia under Gibson, believed Moore had what it took to be successful after his stint at Cardinal Gibbons. 

“Sometimes you get current or ex-players and sometimes they’re good coaches, and sometimes they’re just great players,” Gurdak said. “Whereas him, he’s all encompassed into one. If you just spend a couple hours with him, you’re like, ‘OK. If your path to professional football doesn’t work out, and you want to be a coach, you could definitely do it.’”

‘The kid’s a star’

The announcement wasn’t grandiose. Moore, who played five seasons at NC State, including the last four under Gibson, was publicly named his acting replacement as a position coach through the Wolfpack’s Military Bowl game notes. 

Although it was a subtle way of giving Moore an audition for the future — he remains adamant he is worried about preparing the Pack’s linebackers for the bowl and not his future in coaching — Doeren didn’t just pick Moore because he’s a former player. The Chesterfield, Va., native is more than qualified for the interim, and likely full-time, position — and he proved that at Cardinal Gibbons.

“He has that work ethic on his own, so I don’t think it’s anything that the coaching staff did, we were blessed to have him,” Wright said of Moore. “I honestly said he’s going to be a coach. Look where he is now. … Coach Doeren, I don’t believe, is going to make Isaiah a position coach just because he likes him, but because he likes him and he can get the job done.”

Wright, who holds degrees in Biblical Studies and Christian Leadership, believed this is what Moore was prepared to do by a bigger force. It went back to the first days on the Crusaders’ practice field, where Wright quickly saw Moore light up as he coached and was able to be a natural leader of young men. 

“I think that not only showed me, but it showed him, ‘I can do this, and I love doing this.’ He ate it up,” Wright said. “I knew after Day 2, this guy’s made for this. This is what God’s designed him for. I don’t say that lightly. Literally, this is what God’s designed him for.”

While Wright gave Moore a stamp of approval, he appeared to be witnessing the beginning of a likely long and successful coaching career. Moore, who could be a candidate for the Wolfpack’s full-time linebacker coach position after the bowl, has the opportunity of quickly rising through the collegiate coaching ranks. 

Both Gurdak and Wright had the same inkling.

“I’m going to call it right now, you see this trend of young coaches having these larger positions, within the next five years, his name will be floated for a defensive coordinator position,” Gurdak said. “That’s how highly regarded I think he is with his coaching knowledge and his knowledge of the game.”

Said Wright: “He will be running a defense within five years somewhere. He’s that good. He’ll be able to do what he wants at the college level. He’s one of those guys that in less than 10 years, he’s a head coach.”

While the two gave glowing reviews of Moore, Wright was ready to back that statement up if he was running his own college football program. 

“I’d hire him today,” Wright said. “He would be my first phone call. … He’s got such a bright future. The kid’s a star.”