If you’re looking for proof that persistence pays off, look no further than Indiana safety Louis Moore as the personification of that mantra.
Originally a JUCO player for Navarro College in Texas, Moore performed well enough there to get on the Hoosiers’ radar as a transfer target. He spent a total of three seasons there, spending the 2024 season at Ole Miss between his two separate stints.
Things paid off for Moore in a big way in 2025, where he was a first-team All-American and a national champion as a part of Indiana’s undefeated team. His 92.7 PFSN SAF Impact Score was the second-highest in the Big Ten, and his 6 interceptions led all players in his conference in his final year of collegiate eligibility.
PFSN spoke exclusively with Moore about his preparations for the 2026 NFL Draft, winning the College Football Playoff, his All-American season, and more.
First and foremost, winning the national championship this year: what was that feeling like winning it all?
Louis Moore: “It’s really something that you always wanted to do as a kid. Signing with a college you want to go to, that’s the ultimate goal, is to win the national championship. To do it like the way that we did at Indiana, with the history of the program, the program that gave me an opportunity to be the player I am today.
“It was fantastic, amazing. Honestly, now I can appreciate it more. They witnessed the championship, went through the training, and so I can sit back and look, they can reflect on it. After the Miami game, it honestly felt like, “alright who we got to go beat next?” The media was [talking] about how it was always something while we were winning. It was never just: we’re the better team. It was always something, but it’s not effective that time. It’s just special.”
Over the course of the season, can you describe what the vibe was in the locker room? Share a little bit about the feeling of being around those guys and the culture of that Indiana program.
LM: I’d say, coming back [from Ole Miss], it was nothing but love from the guys, because I knew I was meeting a lot of [guys], especially the staff. I knew everyone on the staff and built a relationship with the coaches, which was part of me leaving the first time, and then even just the new guys, like we were day ones. It felt like coming back home, basically. From the football standpoint, it changed. It was more of a business-oriented program. The culture was business-oriented. The main thing was the main thing, and that was football for everybody.
You started off at JUCO for Navarro College. How did your time there prepare you for the rest of your collegiate journey?
LM: “I’d say it made me a better player, because coming out of my freshman year, I redshirted. When I first got there, I wasn’t ready to play from a physical standpoint. [It helped me improve] mentally with the playbook. I just wasn’t ready; I needed to get building all those aspects. They showed me what will take me into the next level. Because the last time I played was in high school, and they showed me that it was a different level out there than just playing [high school football] in Texas. It showed me all these people all around the world are for real, and these are the guys we gotta go beat out.
“I took that with me going on through the years, until my second year I was starting, and I torn my ACL, so they had me out that second year. When I tore my ACL, that turned me into a good overall football player, because I wasn’t as fast coming back. I wasn’t as fast as I was prior to the ACL.
“Because I played receiver, too [at Navarro]. I had to learn my spots. I didn’t have time for no wasted movements, and get into what I needed to get. I understood the game of football better and understand the pace I have to play with, rather than just being fast and running past people; [I was] getting out of my brakes more efficiently.
“What I did there definitely molded me into the player I am now, especially understanding offense. Now, being on defense out of the ball, I understand formations, where I come off of certain looks, and tendencies and stuff like that, too.”
After that season at Indiana, a lot of you guys are heading into the NFL this year. What does it mean to have all of you right on the verge of hearing your names called, after all the work you all have put in?
LM: “It’s a great feeling, because I feel like, even now, [people ask], “what was it? Why was y’all so successful?” I got a story behind me, with the career I had, all the challenges I faced, but even my team, it was like a whole bunch of me’s. We’re just a whole bunch of guys that overcome adversity, who were always chasing something that we haven’t had in the past.
“Even in the national championship game, I honestly felt like it was, “alright, we gotta go be beasts”. I’m pretty sure everybody felt that way, honestly speaking, because we all clicked. It was understood we’re doing this for each other, and then we’re doing this for the past that we all had had. It made it easy to go in and know we’re gonna give it our all, and we all understood what we had to do on game days.”
How do you like to spend your free time outside of football?
LM: “I like to journal. When I was in Indiana, [I’d just go outside] journaling, getting outdoors and not being in the house, as opposed to being tired after long days of football and stuff like that. I want to do something to get out the house, so that’s something I did in Indiana. I’d say when I’m home, I like to spend time my family and my friends, because I don’t see them during the time, because I’ve been in school, or I’ve been training somewhere. When I’m at home, I like to be a known person, almost. I try to balance my life out and have a life outside of football.”
Let’s say I’m an NFL general manager. What would I be getting if I drafted you to my team?
LM: “You’ll be getting a guy that understands the importance of what it takes to be successful and win outside of the field, outside of Sundays. I understand the recovery aspect, the nutrition aspect, the weight room, all the means that go into part of being successful on Sundays. I understand everything that the coach is telling us to do, the strength coaches, the nutritionist, all this stuff that goes into it. You want to invest in me? I’m gonna make sure I’m crossing my T’s, dotting out the I’s, and make sure I’m ready to go on Sundays.
“Then, I’d say you’re getting a guy that’s gonna execute the game plan that’s set forth. You’re not getting a guy that’s gonna go out there and do too much. I’m gonna play within my role on the team, whether that’s special teams, whether it’s on defense, wherever I gotta make this play, whatever they need me to do. You’re getting a culture guy. I’m not a hassle off the field. I don’t got no off-field issues now, and I never have. It’s just not how I carry myself.
BE AN NFL GM: PFSN’s Ultimate GM Simulator
“Even with that, I’m a person that cares about people for who they are. Outside of the business aspect of what comes with football, we’re all humans at the end of the day. Everybody’s got their own lives that they got to go to when we leave the facility. I feel like I’m a guy that’ll check off somebody if I see something off. Dude, we spend so much time together, I feel like you’d know I like to look at stuff like that, make sure everybody’s okay, just being there for people, as well.
“As far as my age, I say you need a mature guy. I understand, yeah, I’m older, but what have I put out there on tape? What have I put out there for myself as far as my character, my integrity, and stuff like that? I feel like you’re getting a guy that’s ready to go from Day 1.”
