National Signing Day is a special day for high school athletes all across the country, and it was especially exciting for Washington High School’s Rod Moore. He signed his letter of intent to Elizabeth City State University on Wednesday morning in Washington’s media center.

ECSU is a division-II school that participates in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association among other North Carolina Universities such as Chowan, Fayetteville State, Johnson C. Smith, Livingstone, Shaw and Winston-Salem State.

Moore was a problem for opposing offenses this season. He led the team with seven tackles for a loss this season, compiled 65 total tackles with 26 of those being solo tackles and 39 assisted. Moore also led the team with six sacks in his 2019 campaign.

Moore was bursting out the seams with excitement on Wednesday morning, smiling ear to ear as he talked about his commitment to the Vikings.

“Man, I’m ready. It was a fun experience here in high school. I’m going to miss it a lot. I made a lot of good friends and made some great memories,” Moore said. “I’ll be playing defensive end and outside linebacker there. I need to improve my speed, though. So, I’m going to get to work on that.”

Moore said that his favorite memory from his high school football career was defeating Kinston on the Vikings’ home turf this past season, as the Pam Pack walked away 27-14 winners.

Washington went on to be co-conference, 2-A Eastern Carolina champions, and earned a No. 2 seed for the NCHSAA state playoffs.

Interim head coach Perry Owens talked about Moore’s growth in the weight room throughout his years at Washington and what ECSU should expect from him.

“You’re going to get work ethic. When I first met him he was about 6-foot-1, and 170 pounds and was really hungry and eager to learn. He played wide receiver and quarterback early on, but he found his home at defensive end. He’s a product of our system, and put on 40-50 pounds of solid muscle. He’s bought in with nutrition, has a great GPA, he’s going to listen, work hard and do right,” Owens said. “I am excited for him, I think Elizabeth City is a great fit and I think he has the ability to make his way onto the field early. … He already looks the part as a freshman, he just has to learn to play at that level and adjust to that speed.”

Moore is now 6-foot-3 at about 240 pounds, according to Owens, and is ready to take the next steps towards being a collegiate athlete.