Devin Moore was always different, and not just for what he could do between the sidelines of a football field.
Of course, the Naples High graduate’s play on the gridiron was special – the defensive back earned a starting job for the Golden Eagles as a freshman and never looked back, continuing on a trajectory that led him to the University of Florida and, in all likelihood, the NFL draft later this week.
However, what Moore will bring to an NFL team goes beyond his impressive playmaking skills.
His high school coach Rick Martin recalled how, during the coronavirus pandemic, Moore helped the administration hand out laptops to students.
“No one asked him to do it,” Martin said. “No one told him to do it. He just did it, and we found out about it afterwards. And there’s so many stories like that about Devin.”
Moore’s athletic gifts have played an undeniable role in his success, but the reason he is on the precipice of achieving his dreams has just as much to do with the full person.
In January, he was named the 2025 GatorMade x Danny Wuerffel Man of the Year, the University of Florida’s honor recognizing leadership, community service and perseverance among student-athletes.
The NFL draft will take place from April 23-25 in Pittsburgh, and Moore has a chance to be Naples High’s first selection since Carlos Hyde in 2014. Collier County’s last NFL draft pick was Deadrin Senat, who was taken in the third round by the Atlanta Falcons in 2018.
“It’s a blessing just to be in this position,” Moore said. “Definitely surreal.”
Devin Moore poised for NFL draft selection
Several mock drafts have teams picking Moore in the middle rounds of the draft, likely in the third or fourth round. He is the 15th-ranked cornerback on ESPN’s Big Board.
Moore was a four-star recruit out of Naples, where he posted 160 tackles and 10 interceptions in 41 games and was invited to the 2022 All-American Bowl as a junior.
He originally committed to Notre Dame before flipping to Florida in December 2021, choosing the Gators over Alabama, LSU and Auburn.
His time at Florida was complicated by injuries, but Moore was able to fully showcase his proficiency this past season.
Starting every game for the Gators, Moore set career highs across the board with 35 total tackles, two interceptions, three pass deflections, a sack, and a forced fumble.
“It meant everything,” Moore said. “There’s a lot of ups and downs at Florida. I had a good amount of injuries that affected me. But every time I got the opportunity to go out there, play with my brothers, and play for the brand – the University of Florida – it was amazing. And the season might not have went how we wanted it to go, but the relationships and experiences I had at the University of Florida was something I’ll always remember.”
Moore underwent groin surgery after the season, and, as a result, he said he wasn’t at 100 percent for all of the combine testing. In spite of that, Moore has shined during the pre-draft process with NFL teams high on his natural gifts and size at 6-foot-3 and 200 pounds.
“They said they love my length, kind of like my physical features,” Moore said. “The length, the speed, the quickness at my size, the coverage ability.
“And then also from a mental aspect just how smart of a player I am, the character I have. Most importantly, they feel like I’ll be a great fit for the organization to come in and help the organization.”
Moore trained in Frisco, Texas, ahead of his Pro Day in March and is now working out back home in Naples as he prepares for rookie OTAs.
“You don’t realize how much specification and little details that matter going into the combine and Pro Day training,” he said. “So being able to really hone in and focus on those little things taught me a lot. And then also just working out, you’re directly working towards your dream, so it’s been a blessing.”
Devin Moore’s development at Naples High School
Martin was hired in 2019 as Naples’ head football coach to succeed the retiring Bill Kramer ahead of Moore’s junior season.
Martin was plenty familiar with Moore as coach of Naples’ freshman team, where Moore didn’t last long before he was elevated to varsity.
“I knew Devin when he first came in, and he was this tall, skinny freshman kid, and we had kind of heard some stories about him,” Martin said. “We knew he was pretty good.”
The Naples football program is not one where underclassmen get starting jobs very often. Moore was the exception.
“On the field, his athleticism was just different from everyone else’s,” Martin said. “He just had it. He’s one of those kids that you could ask him to do something, and it only took him once and he would do it. And he would do it better than everyone else.”
The Naples staff also indentified that this was a person who was capable of taking on a bigger role within the program.
“Devin is one of the best human beings I’ve ever coached, and I’m saying that from a young age, he was just different,” Martin said. “He was warm. He had a maturity about him that was different than his peers. And he wasn’t afraid to be different and be outspoken and be the leader and do things that you wouldn’t see a normal 15-, 16-year-old do.”
As a result, Moore’s success after leaving Naples High has hardly come as a surprise to Martin.
“It was the way he conducted himself around our school. It was the way he handled the locker room. It was the way he got guys right on the football field. It was one of those deals where, as a coach, you didn’t have to do anything. You know, you didn’t have to worry about your locker room. You didn’t have to worry about guys being on time. You didn’t have to worry about all that stuff because Devin took care of it.
“He made people around him better every day – period, and he continues to do that.”
What an NFL team will get in drafting Devin Moore
Moore will be at home in Naples to hear his name called at the NFL draft this weekend. Even by deciding to play college ball four years in state, he has never strayed far from home.
Moore credited his time with the Golden Eagles as formative in a variety of ways.
“The people I was around — just being able to form those relationships, learn from them on and off the field, it definitely shaped me into the person I am today,” Moore said.
Martin counts himself lucky for the opportunity to be a part of Moore’s journey. He is someone that Martin can hold up as an example to the next generation of Naples football players.
“It’s a blessing,” he said. “There’s programs and coaching staffs that do this thing for a long time and don’t get to coach a kid like Devin Moore. And don’t get me wrong, we had a little bit to do with it, and we’re thankful for it. But Devin is the reason he is where he is, and I’m just thankful that he hasn’t forgot where he’s come from, and I love that he still reps Naples.”
Moore said he feels ready for this next stage of his career and believes he has a lot to offer his next team. He also vowed to become involved in the community of his NFL home.
“They’ll just get an athletic freak, somebody who – they’re big, strong, and fast, but they also have the movement skills at that size to match up with shorter, faster receivers, quicker receivers,” he said. “They’ll also get somebody with a big mental capacity. I can learn different coverages and different schemes on the fly and be able to apply that when I get out there on the field.
“I think, most importantly, they’re going to get a great person. Every day I show up to the building, I show up with a smile on my face because I’m living out my dream.”
Other SWFL players that could be selected
South Fort Myers graduate Eddie Walls, a defensive end at Houston, was invited to the Houston Texans Local Day Invite in early April.
This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Gators DB Devin Moore’s character, skill have him on cusp of NFL Draft pick
Reporting by Dustin B Levy, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News / Naples Daily News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
