Churchland grad draws attention - from fans and foes

It had been another productive day for No. 52 in purple and gold.

He had lined up at both defensive end spots and over the center. He'd stood up, like a linebacker and dropped into pass coverage.

He made nine tackles, including three in the backfield, and sacked the quarterback once. But stats alone didn't do justice to his impact on the game. As he does every week, he had drawn the attention of tackles, guards, the center, running backs, tight ends and wide receivers, all deployed in various combinations to attempt to at least slow him down.

It had seemed at times as if there was more than one 52 out there for James Madison, more than one Arthur Moats. So it was only appropriate that as Moats emerged from the visitor's locker room at William and Mary two weeks ago, he was greeted by a host of family members wearing his Dukes' jersey.

No. 52 was everywhere again, just like on the field.

"I'm asked a lot if he's the best one we've ever had," JMU coach Mickey Matthews said. "It's hard to say, but we've never had a defensive lineman who gets as much attention as he gets."

Matthews wasn't referring to the attention from family, either. Moats, a Churchland High graduate, has a large following at every game, easy to spot all decked out in his JMU jersey.

Rather, Matthews was talking about the various schemes cooked up to contain Moats, who is as dominant a player as there is in the Football Championship Subdivision.

"I've gotten to the point where if I get a double team, I'm happy," Moats said.

Double teams, he can deal with. Triples pose more of a challenge. Moats has faced them on several occasions. Still, he leads the nation in tackles for loss, with 2.5 a game, and is third in sacks, with 1.2 a game.

"He's just unbelievable, the way he's playing right now," Matthews said.

Moats wanted to go out with a big senior year, he said. He was a third-team All-Colonial Athletic Association pick last year, after making 65 tackles and 11.5 sacks. He felt there was something missing from his game, though.

"I was lacking in the film department," he said.

Moats stayed in Harrisonburg, studied game tape and lifted weights. He opened the season with seven tackles against Maryland and has had at least one sack and tackle for loss in every game since.

Always a high-motor player, Moats' competitive fire was fueled by coaches who showed him tape of other standout defensive ends. They didn't stop at tape.

"Calls, late-night text messages, everything," Moats said, laughing.

Point taken. Moats has been a wrecking ball since, and is a leading candidate for the Buck Buchanan Award, given to the top defensive player in FCS.

"We've lined him up everywhere," Matthews said. "We don't want teams to know exactly where he's going to be."

Moats comes by his versatility naturally. He began his football life as a running back, until a youth coach moved him to defense. He missed a chance to play junior varsity for Churchland in the eighth grade because his family was on vacation during tryouts. He served as a team manager instead, a sign of his humility, said his mother, Rosalind.

By ninth grade, Moats was a fixture on the varsity. And he didn't limit himself to football.

"He'd wrestle and then, after pinning someone, would go and play in a basketball game," former Churchland coach Carl Winckler said. "He would play a football game and then go and lift weights afterward.

"He never gave less than 100 percent in anything he did."

Moats' height - he's 6 foot, 1/2 inch and 250 pounds - gave Football Bowl Subdivision recruiters pause. He was considered short for a defensive end. He made an immediate impact at JMU, though, playing as a true freshman.

His stature will be a concern for NFL scouts also. But Moats ran a 4.54 in the 40-yard dash last spring and is expected to get a long look at linebacker, Matthews said.

Meantime, there are three more games to play. The only downside to Moats' senior year has been JMU's struggles as a team. One of the signature programs in FCS, the Dukes have floundered offensively. At 3-5, they need to win out to avoid their first losing season since 2002.

Moats, a political science major with a ready smile, has remained characteristically upbeat. Despite the struggles of the offense, JMU's defense is playing as well or better than it ever has, Matthews said. Moats is a major reason. The attention he demands opens opportunities for other players.

With the end of Moats' JMU career looming, Matthews has just one regret:

"We wish now... that we'd redshirted him."

Ed Miller, (757) 446-2372, ed.miller@pilotonline.com