With 3,570 rushing yards and 34 touchdowns in his Appalachian State career, Jalin Moore is one of the most accomplished backs in school history. Also a two-time captain and one of college football's "most freakish athletes," he's an NFL prospect who suffered a broken ankle but scored on the final play of his college career — a 25-yard run in which he pulled a defender the last 10 yards to the end zone. In recognition of his hard work and determination, the Reese's Senior Bowl recently announced him as the first player to officially accept an invitation to their January event in Mobile, Ala.
As Moore recovers from surgery and looks ahead, he shares his story of pain — and perseverance.
BY JALIN MOORE | #25 | SENIOR
This was my time to show myself and show everybody else what I'm made of.
I ran all those stadium steps. I squat 650 pounds.
I had to show it, you know? On that play at Arkansas State, I had to go out and prove that I was really putting in that kind of work.
You give your all for moments like that.
That's how my senior season at App State ended, on a touchdown run that left me with a broken ankle, but I can't think about that night without thinking back to the beginning of the year, to everything leading up to that game, because I just knew we had a special team — one of the most special teams I've been on in my life.
Every drive, every snap, I try to give it my all for my brothers and not let them down. Every game, I want to play the perfect game.
Things weren't going the way we wanted at Arkansas State, but the play before I checked back in, Darrynton had this great run. It gets me fired up when I see the younger guys come in like that. It puts a different type of energy in me, where it's like, man, now it's my turn. I've got to keep it going.
We run the exact same play, and I break through the middle.
There was just something about this run. I'm still 20 yards away, but I'm thinking, I've got to get in the end zone. I break one or two tackles, and I'm running free, but then I feel somebody on my back.
When I'm in that type of position, I've always thought it was a perfect time to show everybody what you're made of. You try to finish the run, and I finished that run, but when I scored, I knew something wasn't right.
Once I actually turned over and saw what happened to my leg, it was just crazy.
I had a million thoughts running through my head. This was my first time ever breaking something in my life. I've been playing football since I was in kindergarten — could this be my last run ever? The paramedics and doctors, they tend to have little jokes to try to keep you calm, and you don't really know what to do, so I'm just trying to breathe and cooperate.
People were shocked that I reached out to grab the ball again after I hit the ground in the end zone. Of course I was in pain — that was some of the most excruciating pain in my life — but the goalline was right there. No doubt I'm reaching for that ball and securing the touchdown. I've seen guys break something and let the ball go, like it's a natural instinct to let it go and grab what broke, but that just wasn't in me.
Those couple of minutes I was laying on the field, I was keeping myself together, but deep down, you're confused and scared. But I know the camera is all in my face, so I can't show any pain, no signs of weakness, because our running backs and everybody else, they're looking to see how I'm responding to adversity. The game was adversity itself, so in that moment, I had to show them that I'm still strong and make sure they're not worrying about me.
Once you get back to the showers and it's quiet, you realize that really just happened. One play really could be your last, like I've been saying my whole life. That's why we touch that sign when we leave the locker room.
They give me a towel, I'm on crutches, and it took me so long to take a shower. You have to do so many little things different, and it just gives you more time to think about what happened.
My mom was the first person I called, and after I talked to her, my phone started buzzing with all these messages coming through. By the end of it, I had like 500.
Once you get away from everybody, don't have anybody telling you that everything is going to be OK, I turned off my phone because too much was going on. I'm listening to the game on the intercom, hearing that the boys are doing good, and I hated I couldn't be out there with them. I'm not a big crier, but I'm not gonna lie, I sat on the training table with my leg propped up and dropped a couple tears. It was just the fear of not knowing if I'd ever be the same again.
I just had to let it all out, but that was the last time I cried about it, and I'm not going to cry about it again. I'm not the type of person to be sad about anything, because life goes on.
You know, I came from nothing. I was on the bottom of every depth chart, didn't have a lot of people recruiting me in high school. As soon as I get here, I'm on the bottom of the depth chart again. I've fought through so much, so why not just keep fighting and give your all? Every day for the rest of my life isn't going to be an easy day, and bad things come everybody's way, so it's how you respond to it.
I've got a daughter who looks up to me. I know she doesn't know what's going on right now the way she's grabbing on my leg, but I've always said I want to be a good father figure to my kids, because I know what it's like to be on the other end of the stick, and I want to do that for more than just my people. I want to do it for everybody I'm surrounded by, everybody that's looking up to me. I've got to stay strong and be an example for them.
I try to take that and put it into when I'm hurting, or when I'm in the weight room and Coach Mike is kicking my butt with all the workouts.
Everybody in the App State family has shown me so much love, from giving me rides, bringing me food, even watching my dog, Kash. The coaches' wives check on me to make sure I'm OK. Everybody knows I have a task ahead of me and knows what I'm trying to get done. With them trying to help me reach my goals any way I can, it's only right that I get back right and do it bigger than ever.
It's crazy, because my position coach, Coach Holt, before every game, he'd tell me, 'Don't try to get it all in one play.' I take that into my daily life. When I got my cast off, Brian, the trainer, was telling me it's OK to move my ankle. I was like, damn, I can't even move it yet. He told me not to force it, that I've got to take it slow and not rush it. I've got to keep that strong mindset and keep the stubborn me out of it, you know, trying to rush things and be Superman, the guy making the strongest college football player lists.
It's definitely sticking to the process, because I'm not trying to only get back on the field, but at a high level in the National Football League. Everything has to be done a certain way, and I'm sticking to that plan.
I've got so many bright things ahead of me, and I don't care if it was the worst injury ever, I've got faith that I'm going to be better than what I used to be.
When I wake up in the morning, I look at myself every day standing on my one leg and prep myself up, like, this is still who you were designed to be.
This is only part of the story.
