SOUTH BEND — Notre Dame football is providing cover material again this year for the sport’s most popular video game.
All-America cornerback Leonard Moore is one of six players featured in a leaked cover for the forthcoming “EA Sports College Football 27.” An official rollout is scheduled for Thursday, June 4, in Chicago.
Moore, a junior with seven career interceptions, is shown with his helmet off and arms raised. A football, presumably representing his latest takeaway, is in his left hand.
While Irish coach Marcus Freeman joined star running back Jeremiyah Love and a cast of dozens for last year’s EA cover shoot, Moore is part of a pared-down list of honorees for this edition.
Indiana coach Curt Cignetti, fresh off the first national championship in program history, is front and center. The Hoosiers’ leader is wearing his usual expression of mild perturbance.
Joining Moore on the cover are quarterbacks Jaiden Maiava (USC) and Dante Moore (Oregon), Miami wide receiver Malachi Toney, Mississippi running back Kewan Lacy and Texas linebacker Colin Simmons.
Leonard Moore is 2-0 against Maiava, brandishing a sword in his right hand for the cover shot, but the Irish and Trojans have put their long-running series on hold.
Toney, who had six receptions for 82 yards and a touchdown against the Irish last year in his college debut, figures to see plenty of Moore when the Hurricanes visit South Bend in early November.
Half the players on this year’s cover played high school ball in Texas: Leonard Moore is from Round Rock, Simmons is from Duncanville and Lacy played in both Fort Worth and Lancaster.
Leonard Moore was rated 432nd nationally in the 2024 signing class with a 247Sports Composite ranking him as the No. 67 recruit from Texas and the 38th-best cornerback overall.
Simmons’ Class of 2024 rankings were considerably loftier: No. 18 nationally, No. 5 in Texas and No. 2 among edge rushers.
Mike Berardino covers Notre Dame football for the South Bend Tribune and NDInsider.com. Follow him on social media @MikeBerardino.
This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Notre Dame football has another EA cover subject in CB Leonard Moore
Reporting by Mike Berardino, South Bend Tribune / South Bend Tribune
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
