GRAND BLANC — As a trio of defenders closed in on him, Traverse Moore kept churning his legs.
With the end zone in sight, the senior quarterback refused to go down and kept fighting, eventually diving across the goal line to complete a 14-yard touchdown run that gave the DeWitt football team a two-score lead over Warren DeLaSalle early in the fourth quarter of their Division 3 state semifinal
And as Moore celebrated with teammates in the end zone he yelled, “I’m the toughest out here.”
That toughness has been on display all season and throughout the four-year varsity career for Moore, who has constantly made big plays as a run-first quarterback this season for the Panthers. And he made several more Saturday, Nov. 22, rushing for four scores in the second half as DeWitt advanced to the Division 3 state title game with its 41-20 victory over DeLaSalle at Grand Blanc High School.
“Coming into this I knew I needed to play tough,” Moore said. “I knew this was going to be a bloodbath, this was going to be a war. We kept saying that we have to wear them out, we have to be the ones on top and that’s what we did. We all stepped up and made plays.”
Moore, who is committed to Central Michigan and plans to enroll early, finished with 29 carries for 320 yards and four touchdowns. Much of his production came in the second half as the Panthers erased a 13-7 halftime deficit by scoring 34 unanswered points.
Moore had touchdown runs of 52, 1, 14 and 88 yards while contributing to the Panthers advancing to their first state title game since 2021.
“I think Trav Moore is one of the top few players in the state of Michigan,” DeWitt coach Rob Zimmerman said. “He doesn’t get the credit that some of the other kids do, but put him on the game field and we’re playing in the semifinals and the kid completely dominated the game today. That says a lot of about what kind of player he is.”
Moore surpassed 2,000 yards rushing for the season with his state semifinal performance. He heads into next week’s state final against Mount Pleasant with 2,088 rushing yards and 29 touchdowns
“Just like everybody else on our team, that dude does not quit,” DeWitt senior Jacob Schorfhaar said. “Whether it’s to get (just) a yard, he gives everything he’s got just to get that yard. I’m so proud of how hard he works every single day. He’s the hardest worker on our team. I’m just so fortunate to be able to play alongside someone like that.”
Contact Brian Calloway at bcalloway@lsj.com. Follow him on X @brian_calloway and Bluesky @briancalloway.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Trav Moore’s 320 yards, 4 TDs lift DeWitt football to semifinal win
Reporting by Brian Calloway, Lansing State Journal / Lansing State Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
