Duke football: Where in the world is Jordan Moore?

Where in the world is Jordan Moore? That’s exactly what Duke football wants everyone, especially the opposing coaching staff, asking when the Blue Devil offense is on the field.

Moore is officially listed on the roster as a quarterback. He competed throughout the spring and preseason camp for the starting job that ultimately went to Riley Leonard. But head coach Mike Elko made it clear during Tuesday’s press conference that was posted by goduke.com, that Moore is too much of a weapon to have standing on the sideline,

"“He is such a special football player and a special athlete that we’ve tried to figure out how to utilize him. We’re going to be able to use him in a lot of different ways. We’re going to make sure we get the ball in his hands. You know, he can play wideout. He can play running back. He obviously can play quarterback and knows that part of the package as well. I think it gives us a little bit more freedom to move him around.”"

If you think using Moore in multiple ways is some kind of gimmick cooked up by Elko and offensive coordinator Kevin Johns, think again. He was the team’s second-leading rusher last season when he averaged five yards per carry on forty-four attempts, while lining up solely at quarterback. Moore is capable of being effective in this kind of role and Elko wants to make things more difficult on opposing defenses this year,

"“I think it gives us a little bit more freedom to move him around. I think maybe last year, you know, it was a little bit easier to target him and know where he was going to be. Now we’ve got a little bit more flexibility with the ways we can utilize him and really allow him to be the playmaker he’s capable of being.”"

Wideout, running back, quarterback. Put him in the slot, line him up in the backfield, send him in motion.  Make the defense have to be aware of him each time he is in the game. I like this idea of doing whatever is needed to get the ball into the hands of a playmaker like Moore. The more weapons available to your young quarterback, the better off the Duke offense will be with Riley Leonard leading it.

I’m really looking forward to seeing the different ways the Blue Devils’ offense can make an opposing defense say, ‘Where in the world is Jordan Moore?” The first opportunity comes Friday night against Temple at Wallace Wade Stadium.