NC State Football: What Isaiah Moore means to Wolfpack defense
NC State linebacker Isaiah Moore didn’t have the flashiest job at times last season, but it’s not always about the guy making the plays in football. Moore was the stable center of the Wolfpack defense for the first seven games of the season. As the team’s middle linebacker and a redshirt junior, he was responsible for calling plays and lining up players in the proper position before the snap. Though he didn’t have the same tackles or splash plays as teammate Drake Thomas, he was a crucial cog in the front seven for defensive coordinator Tony Gibson.
That was, at least, until the first half of Week 8 against Miami. Moore suffered a season-ending injury in that game, leaving NC State even more short-handed at linebacker. The team was already dealing with the loss of star linebacker Payton Wilson after his season-ending injury in Week 2.
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So what was the Wolfpack missing without Moore in the lineup? First, we’ll get into how he played and his role before his injury.
Isaiah Moore Shines in Run Defense
The primary objective for the middle linebacker in almost every defensive system is run-defense. Mike (middle) linebacker is the last bastion of run-first oriented players on the second level of the defense in modern college football. While the strongside (Sam) linebacker has vanished in some systems and the weakside (Will) linebacker spends a good deal of time covering the edges of the defense, only Mike stays between the tackles on every play. That was the primary job of Isaiah Moore for NC State’s front seven.
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To that end, he was one of the best at it in the ACC. His PFF run-defense grade ranked second in the conference behind his teammate, Thomas. He also had one of the lowest average depth of tackles in the conference, averaging just over a yard from the line of scrimmage before he brought the ball-carrier down in run defense. That means he’s fast, flowing downhill and putting the offense behind the sticks. While he only had nine stops in six complete games, he was consistent, missing zero tackles during that time.
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Moore was good enough to allow Gibson to call more risk-reward style defenses with his stopper in the middle. Despite the threat of Clemson’s talent in the backfield, NC State used a spread-beating defense that had only five players in the tackle box at the snap. If Moore missed his gap or a tackle as the only linebacker present, it could be a huge play. Clemson only attempted 11 rushes but got just 36 yards against the Wolfpack
NC State struggled to find replacement
NC State is a very well-coached team, and while Gibson’s unit still played well overall, linebacker was an apparent problem after Moore’s season ended. At first, the team tried to move junior defender Jaylon Scott over from his position to fill in for Moore. However, Scott was already filling in for Wilson and, at 245 pounds, made the most sense right away to fill the vacant and urgent need at Mike. After a disastrous game against Louisville where Scott didn’t record a solo tackle and missed two more, sophomore Devon Betty stepped into the role for the rest of the season.
There’s no way around it, though; NC State was not the same against the run without Moore in the lineup. Betty filled in admirably but missed five tackles in the season’s final month and struggled to find and win his gap consistently.
With Moore, Thomas, and Wilson coming back for one final season together, NC State should have the deepest and most experienced linebacker unit in college football. While they will still need to replace Vi Jones, the Wolfpack should be as solid as ever in 2022.
