Mitch flashback: The ascension of superstar Herman Moore

BY MITCH ALBOM • FREE PRESS COLUMNIST • June 13, 2008

Editor's note: Story originally published on Oct. 30, 1995.
He slammed the ball between his legs, then bounced up and down, then whacked himself in the helmet with both hands, then shook his fists at the crowd. I guess this is what you'd call a touchdown dance. That, or he ate some really bad Mexican food before the game.


Either way, it was his third touchdown in 26 minutes, the capper to an awesome half of football by an increasingly awesome player. You'll forgive me if I don't get overly excited about the big picture, the Lions' 24-16 victory over Green Bay, because I have watched this dance too many times before, Detroit winning just enough to keep you interested, then losing when it matters. I will not be fooled. The Lions are 3-5. If they make the playoffs, I'll take back everything I've said about them. Until then, we're just watching wheels spin.

I, however, will sing the praises of the tall gentleman known as Herman Moore, who began in this town as a skinny No. 1 draft choice, and has gone from promising to impressive to dangerous to -- and I do not use this word loosely -- superstar.

This is not exaggeration. I see Moore as the third-best receiver in football right now, behind only Picasso himself, Jerry Rice, and the ebullient Cowboy, Michael Irvin. Rice is still in a class of his own, but Irvin and Moore are an arm's length apart, and considering one is on a team heading for the Super Bowl while the other probably will be home for the holidays, Moore might be even more impressive.

"He is an amazing player," quarterback Scott Mitchell said, after Moore accounted for all the touchdowns and 147 yards of Detroit's offense Sunday.

"You know you might not hit him in the hands, or the numbers, and he's still going to make the catch."

Even if there's blood in his eye.

Moore was seeing red -- his own

We didn't mention that? Well, most viewers didn't realize it either. On Moore's second touchdown, a 69-yard catch-and- burst over the middle, a Green Bay linebacker took a swipe as Moore passed and ripped the skin above his eye. Within seconds, Moore was bleeding like a prizefighter.

"With about 30 yards to go I started to see red," he recalled. "I thought it was sweat, but it was blood."

No matter. He kept going -- in fact, he hit the afterburners and outraced the Green Bay defense the way a Porsche outraces a Yugo. Who knows how fast he might have gone had he been able to see straight?

This fifth-gear speed -- a la Jerry Rice -- was one of two things Moore did Sunday that proved his membership in the elite class of receivers. The other came on his third score, late in the first half, when he went down the sidelines, looked over his shoulder and saw Mitchell's pass coming short.

Moore adjusted, slipped behind the defender and caught it before the guy knew where he was, then spun off and danced into the end zone. A 29-yard score. It was ballet that could have gotten him into Alvin Ailey.

This was impressive enough. The fact that it was Moore's idea puts it over the top. "I suggested to Scott a few weeks ago, when we were playing the Packers, that the way they play defense, we could throw it short and still complete the pass. We did it today. That was designed."

He not only catches the passes, he comes up with the plays?

How do you not like that?

Don't worry, he'll be back at the hop

Before the season, Moore did an interview on WJR radio, in which he was asked what a "successful" season would be in his mind, statistically speaking.

"Ninety catches," Moore said.

Ninety catches? It sounded bold. But here we are, halfway through the season, and Moore already has 55 catches and nine touchdowns -- not only ahead of his dream pace, but way ahead of the Lions' record book. In the history of this franchise, no receiver has caught more than 77 passes or 15 touchdowns in a single year. If he stays healthy, Moore will smash those marks easily. So he will be, for this season anyhow, the greatest receiver in Lions history.

If you ask me, this is just the beginning. Here is a truly gifted athlete, a former track star who trains in the off- season with his track star wife. But he is not breakable, like some speedsters. He's tough. He catches in traffic. When I asked how much of his potential he had reached, at age 26, this is what he said:

"Honestly? Maybe 65 percent."

That would be bragging on someone else. Moore, however, is serious -- almost studious -- when it comes to the game. He knows his 6-foot-4 height and the advantage that gives him. When you ask about Rice and Irvin, he doesn't genuflect. "Those are the elite receivers, but I feel I work as hard as they do. And if I get used the way they do, I think I can do similar things."

Right now, this is still Barry Sanders' team. But week after week, the enemy radar turns more to Moore. When it splits evenly -- and with Brett Perriman, we might be looking at the best receiving tandem in the NFL right now -- this team's offense will be held back only by the accuracy of Mitchell's arm and the blocking on the line.

It's a sweet thing to think about. Forget for a moment, the Lions' agonizingly erratic performance. With each passing week, we are witnessing superstar clay, hardening in the mold. We may even have to learn that touchdown dance.

"It's the Bunny Hop," Moore said sheepishly. "I used to do it in college. I had to do something. The crowd was cheering, I just wanted to stay in the end zone longer."

Don't worry. Something tells me he'll be back.