Jimmy Moreland knows a thing or two about football. Why? Because this James Madison All-American hails from the town of Belle Glade, Florida, originally — where the football talent is abundant and the kid pickup games are legendary. Where Moreland is from, young athletes make it to the NFL, and he'd like to join that illustrious club. The FCS has worked out great for this interception artist.
Moreland roamed the JMU secondary in 56 career games from 2014 to 2018, picking off 18 passes, deflecting 63 more and accumulating 208 career tackles. He also showed in his senior season he could be a "backfield terror" with 7.5 tackles for loss. Oh, and to you scouts of the NFL — if you're curious about if this guy can contribute on special teams? He blocked five kicks as a true freshman in 2014.
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Scouts like to see FCS guys on film against FBS teams. So how'd that go for Moreland? Well, in his first career college game in 2014 he intercepted a pass against Maryland, then had a season-high seven tackles against Mitch Trubisky and North Carolina as a sophomore. He had a season-high 11 tackles in a win against East Carolina as a junior and seven tackles and a hurry against N.C. State last fall.
His FCS playoff performances the past few years were just as stellar. Oh, and he had an interception in four straight games last fall, and three INTs went for touchdowns.
Scouts like to see clutch plays. Moreland could change his middle name Roger to Clutch … even though some JMU fans will remind you that his middle name should actually be changed to a "colorful metaphor" that begins with an F (for those who once watched Star Trek movies and know what colorful metaphor means). HERO Sports regulations deny us the ability to publish that colorful metaphor, but you see where we're going with this … and let's put it this way, opposing quarterbacks probably used the word a few times when describing Moreland.
Equally productive JMU teammate and good buddy Rashad Robinson told HERO Sports there's another key thing about Moreland that won't be making the stat sheets, but is of equal importance.
"He is a comedian, man, and he gets along with everybody," Robinson said. "If you go around in a bad mood, he's going to put a smile on your face. He's full of jokes. But when the lights are on, or when it's time to get serious in the meeting room and on the field, he's serious."
That's right … Moreland is the ultimate locker-room type of teammate. He won't be pouting in the corner, worrying only about himself, he'll be cheering up his comrades in pads. NFL Scouts look for that too, and they'll get it in spades with this native Floridian.
"That comes from my dad (Jimmy Moreland Sr.) … they call him Scooby, which is short for Scooby Doo," Moreland Jr. told HERO Sports. "He was always a class clown. I just try to get that energy going and keep a smile on peoples' faces. Scouts bring that up a lot, they've talked to me about my personality. They always try to get to know you when they talk to you. My character is going to show."
Moreland told HERO Sports he has talked a lot recently with the Bears, Giants, Ravens, Redskins and Cardinals, among others. That will happen when you shined at the East-West Shrine Game, then, in turn, get invited to the big daddy itself, the Senior Bowl. The NFL Draft is less than two weeks away, and it's a unanimous projection that Moreland will be a Day Three draft pick … which would be the first at JMU since Earl Watford in 2013 and only the 15th in program history.
"I'm not really a big nervous type guy," Moreland said. "So it'll be professional. You've got to be quiet for the first few weeks as rookies, you can't talk out of turn. But I'm going to enjoy every moment of it, I'll tell you that. It's time to get out there and run. I'm done with the traveling now and I'm just focused now on staying in shape and be ready to be in camp."[divider]
JIMMY MORELAND'S DRAFT PROJECTIONS
| SERVICE | PROJECTION |
| DraftScout.com | 6th round |
| WalterFootball | 4th to 6th round |
| Dane Brugler/The Athletic | 4th round |
| CBSSports | 5th round |
| DraftAnalyst | 4th to 5th round |
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Here are the links to the FCS Combine performance charts, position by position (how the NFL Combine breaks it down):
Safeties | Cornerbacks |
OLB/DE | Defensive Tackles
ILBs | Offensive Linemen
Running Backs | Quarterbacks
Special Teams
Wide Receivers | Tight Ends | ALL Positions
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