Knowshon Moreno

Infobox NCAA Athlete
name = Knowshon Moreno


caption =
college = Georgia
conference = SEC
sport = Football
position = TB
class = Junior (rs)
career_start = 2007
nickname =
height_ft = 5
height_in = 11
weight_lb = 207
nationality = USA
birth_date = birth date and age|1987|7|16
birth_place = Belford, New Jersey
highschool = Middletown South High School
former_school(s)=
awards =

Knowshon Moreno (born July 16, 1987 in Belford, New Jersey) is the current starting running back for the University of Georgia Bulldogs.

Early life

Moreno grew up in West Keansburg, New Jersey. [Strickland, Carter. [http://www.ajc.com/uga/content/sports/uga/stories/2007/09/24/gareport_0925.html "Dogs offensive line good, but not great"] , "Atlanta Journal-Constitution", September 25, 2007. Accessed October 17, 2007. "Moreno, a 5-foot-11, 207-pound native of Belford, N.J., tied senior Thomas Brown with a team-leading 74 rushing yards during the Bulldogs' 26-23 overtime win."] He played high school football at Middletown High School South, where he led his team to three state championships. [Wilno, Don. [http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070929/COMMUNITY/709290303/1073/community "Jump gets jump on Wesley College; Sanderson helps bowl over Temple"] , "Asbury Park Press", September 29, 2007. Accessed October 17, 2007. "Redshirt freshman Knowshon Moreno, a graduate of Middletown High School South, tied senior starting kicker Thomas Brown with a 46 yard field-goal in the University of Georgia's 3-2 overtime victory over Alabama at Bryan-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala."] He rushed for 1,808 yards on 185 carries and scored 43 TDs in 10 games as a senior. He finished his high school career with 6,268 career rushing yards, 128 touchdowns, and 1782 points. His rushing yards is second all-time in New Jersey high school ranks, while he is New Jersey's all-time leading scorer. In one game against the Holmdel Hornets, he rushed for eight touchdowns.

He was the #1 running back and #15 prospect according to Rivals.com, #2 running back according to Scout.com, and was a PrepStar 200 selection. He was also an EA Sports All-American while being recruited by Georgia, Maryland, Michigan, Virginia, Virginia Tech, and Florida. [App.com [http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051210/SPORTS0101/104030086/-1/SPORTS0103 "Football coach and players of the year: Thompson, Moreno, Macaluso"] , "Asbury Park Press", December 10, 2005. Accessed October 1, 2008. "...and has schools such as Georgia, Virginia Tech, Maryland, Florida and Oklahoma pursuing him."] Moreno eventually signed his letter of intent to Georgia.

Collegiate career

Freshman season

Moreno redshirted in 2006, but returned in 2007 as a redshirt freshman. After a great spring, Moreno shared time with Thomas Brown as the starting running back in the season opener against Oklahoma State. Moreno totaled 70 yards on 20 carries with two receptions for 51 yards in the 35-14 win. In the following game against South Carolina, Moreno saw most of the rushing duties with 14 carries for 104 yards in the 16-12 loss. In the third game of the season against Western Carolina, Moreno scored his first career college touchdown in the 45-16 win. His totals on the day were 94 yards on 13 rushes with one touchdown.

Entering the Bulldogs' game against the Vanderbilt Commodores, it was announced that Georgia's starting tailback Thomas Brown would be sidelined with a broken collarbone. Moreno was elevated to starting tailback in Brown's place and responded with 157 yards gained on the ground in a tight 20-17 Bulldog victory.

In the following week, he continued his impressive season with 188 yards rushing and three touchdowns on 33 carries as Georgia defeated its rival, the Florida Gators. Against the Troy Trojans the next game, Moreno rushed for 196 yards, joining Herschel Walker as the only player in Georgia history to rush for 1,000 yards in his freshman season.

Moreno rushed for over 100 yards for the fifth straight game in leading the Georgia Bulldogs to a 24-13 victory over the Kentucky Wildcats while totaling 124 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries. Moreno is the first Georgia tailback since Herschel Walker in 1982 to rush for over 100 yards in five straight games.

Through the first ten weeks of the 2007 season, Moreno was named the SEC Freshman of the Week three times and SEC Offensive Player of the Week once. [ [http://www.accessnorthga.com/detail.php?n=203696 Moreno named top SEC freshman for third time this season | AccessNorthGa ] ] He was also named onto the all-SEC first team and was the unanimous SEC Freshman of the Year.

Moreno finished the season with 1,334 yards on 227 carries for 14 touchdowns. He also added 253 receiving yards on 20 receptions.

ophomore season

Many believe Knowshon Moreno has become the most accomplished tailback at Georgia since Garrison Hearst. [http://www.onlineathens.com/stories/110307/football_20071103008.shtml] In fact, Dave Archer and Verne Lundquist have compared Moreno to that former Heisman finalist, while others have compared him to Herschel Walker, Reggie Bush, and Marshall Faulk. His enthusiastic playing style has endeared him to Georgia fans and is infectious to his teammates who are energized by his presence.

In week one of the 2008 season, against Georgia Southern, Moreno rushed 8 times for 59 yards and 3 touchdowns. He also had 2 receptions for 53 yards.

Week two against Central Michigan saw another stellar Moreno performance of 3 touchdowns and 168 yards. One of his most impressive plays included a leaping hurdle over Central Michigan player, Vince Agnew.

In week 3, Georgia held on to defeat South Carolina in a close game. With the help of Moreno's touchdown to put the Bulldogs on top, the Dawgs managed to pull out the win and remain undefeated. Knowshon was held to 79 yards on 20 carries with 1 touchdown.

Week four against the Arizona State Sun Devils witnessed another good performance by Moreno. He rushed for 149 yards, which was his 8th 100 yard rushing game, as well as scored on two touchdown runs. He rushed for 23 times, averaging 6.5 yards per touch. He had a most impressive leap into the endzone on his first score, which had him airborne from the 4 yard line and diving over an ASU defender.

Accolades

2007

At the end of his freshman season, Knowshon Moreno was the unanimous SEC Freshman of the Year, as well as the featured tailback on the Freshman All-American first team, All-SEC first team, SEC All-Freshman team. Moreno was also the Sporting News' Freshman Offensive Player of the Year.

References

External links

* [http://knowshonforheisman.com/ KnowshonForHeisman.com]
* [http://www.georgiadogs.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=40675&SPID=3571&DB_OEM_ID=8800&ATCLID=308360&Q_SEASON=2006 Georgia Football Bio]
* [http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/player/profile?playerId=189614 ESPN Player Card]
* [http://www.knowshonzone.com Knowshon Moreno Fan Site]