Jason Moore prepares to be Larry Johnson’s next project with OSU football
Jason Moore didn’t think he was at the same level as Chase Young even though the DeMatha Catholic High School defensive lineman was on the same path as the former five-star defensive end and No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft, getting the attention and offers from premier college programs across the country.
“You are talking about the next great D-lineman, next behind Chase Young, all that hype,” Moore told The Dispatch. “For me, I felt like I wasn’t really on that level. I kind of used that as my motivation and try to get on that same level as Chase and all the other great defensive linemen we have.”
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Following in the footsteps of Young, and fellow DeMatha stars Cameron Wake and Shane Simmons, Moore, according to DeMatha football coach Bill McGregor, was next in line. He saw unlimited potential in Moore from the moment he first met the defensive end.
“Each year, you could see Jason improving and getting better and getting a little bit stronger, catching up to his body, just becoming who he is right now,” McGregor said. “I still think his future’s in front of him.”
Larry Johnson sees potential in Jason Moore
Ohio State defensive line coach Larry Johnson also believes in Moore’s future, enough to make Moore his next project.
Moore remembers meeting Johnson early in his high school career at DeMatha, but their relationship really started to flourish in January.
They talked on the phone as much as they could, starting with exchanges about defensive line play and football schemes before growing their connection with conversations about things outside of football. As a result of their deepening trust, Moore committed July 10, joining Will Smith Jr. and, eventually, Kayden McDonald as the Buckeyes’ three defensive line commits in the 2023 class.
“We’re from the same area, so it was really easy to relate to each other,” Moore said of Johnson, who started his coaching career at prep schools in Maryland. “And just having that bond, it definitely got really tight.”
Johnson made it clear he sees the same potential in Moore as McGregor did initially, viewing the lineman’s 6-foot-6, 255-pound frame paired with an ability to stay low and keep leverage at the line of scrimmage along with an aggressiveness and motor that matches what Ohio State expects from its defensive line.