Virginia Tech punter Peter Moore has a chance to play in front of family and friends against Tulane in the Military Bowl at Navy-Marine Corps Stadium on Dec. 27.
The Military Bowl marks the first game Moore has played in his home state since his high school days. The Calvert Hall graduate and Davidsonville native is in his third year as the starting punter for the Hokies, who finished the 2023 season 6-6 overall and 5-3 in the ACC.
“It means a lot to me, especially because a lot of people can’t get down to Virginia Tech to watch me play,” Moore said on Glenn Clark Radio Dec. 20. “Just to have some family members that haven’t been down to Blacksburg yet, some friends also just to see that game is going to be really special to me.”
Moore has played in one other postseason contest, the Pinstripe Bowl against Maryland in 2021. He had an 8-yard rush to pick up a first down on a fake punt. Does he have another trick play up his sleeve, this time with his friends and family in attendance?
“Maybe we’ll draw something up. I don’t want to give it away,” Moore said. “… It would be the perfect game to run a fake in front of the hometown crowd.”
The 6-foot-1, 200-pound special teams cog has booted 58 punts for 2,508 yards and a 43.2-yard average in 2023. Moore pinned opponents inside the 20-yard line 16 times. Those statistics boosted his career numbers to 8,541, 42.9 and 64.
This year, Moore had the opportunity to take part in a new tradition at Virginia Tech that honors legendary coach Frank Beamer, who led the Hokies to a 238-121-2 mark from 1987-2015. Beamer also played for the team from 1966-1968, wearing No. 25.
As such, one special teams player has worn No. 25 for Virginia Tech every week since 2016. (Beamer was known for producing difference-making special-teams units as a head coach.) Moore was chosen to wear No. 25 during the Hokies’ homecoming game against Pitt on Sept. 30.
“Obviously, Coach Beamer had huge success in special teams as a coach here. To get to wear that number, it really means a lot to me because it’s representing his legacy,” Moore said. “It’s representing all the great kickers, punters, long snappers, punt returners, kick returners, all those guys that played on special teams before me and carried on Coach Beamer’s legacy. It’s just really special to get to wear that number and represent something bigger than myself.”
Moore has one more year of eligibility remaining, but he could also choose to explore the NFL Draft. Three punters were taken in the 2023 draft, four in 2022 and one in 2021. Moore believes he is on the right track to making a career out of punting.
“I think the biggest thing at this point is directional punting, just making sure that I’m putting the ball in the right spot,” he said. “I think I’m really close on a lot of things for being ready to go for the next level. I think my hang time and my distance on my punts is at that level. I think I just need to improve directionally, and that’s really the one thing that I’m going to be focusing on to get to the next level.”
See Also: Virginia Tech Punter, Calvert Hall Grad Peter Moore Looked Up To Sam Koch Growing Up
For more from Peter Moore, listen to the full interview here:
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Virginia Tech Athletics