Jerry Moore, Appalachian State University’s former head football coach, visited the West Henderson football team on Friday, Oct. 25, at 12:30 p.m. to motivate the team before their home game against Tuscola.

“You’re playing what I think is the greatest team sport ever created, and I use the word team because it’s one of the most important words in this game,” Moore said. “When you make your sacrifices and do the things that you’ve done to get where you are right now, you’ll remember this for the rest of your life.”

Moore has had a long coaching career with multiple colleges such as Texas Tech and Arkansas. However, he is most known for his time coaching at App State. He coached there from 1989 to 2012 and in 2005 he led the Mountaineers to their first NCAA Division 1-AA Championship. This was the first National Championship for any football team in North Carolina. He went back in 2006 and in 2007 to the National Championship in what many call the first ever “three-peat” in NCAA Division 1 FCS/1-AA history. He was selected for inclusion into the Southern Conference Hall of Fame and College Football Hall of Fame in 2014.

“You’re talking about a legend, a guy who knows how to coach against adversity and through it, someone who knows what it’s like to be undefeated and play big games, somebody that can motivate these kids and hopefully stress the importance of small things and determination, maybe speak on leadership,” Linebacker Coach Daniel Holbert said. “I think it turned out pretty well.”

Although many members of the team expected Moore to talk about the importance of winning games, they were met with a surprise when he emphasized working together as a team more than winning.

“He didn’t just come in to talk about football, football, football,” junior Jesse Gerard said. “He came in and he told us that there’s a deeper connection between the players. We can’t just go out there and only play our position, we have to think about each other and work hard. It was pretty inspiring; we know what we have to do.”