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Ever since he was hired as SMU’s next football head coach, Chad Morris has said that he and his staff would focus their recruiting efforts on players from Texas.

If that’s the case, does David Moore represent indicate an exception to that policy?

Yes and no.

It’s true that Moore plays his high school football at Milton High School in Alpharetta, Ga., a little more than 25 miles north of Atlanta. But Moore is not without his Texas lineage. In grades seven through 10, he played in Prosper, almost 35 miles north of Dallas. In the spring of his sophomore year, he transferred to Guyer High School in Denton, taking part in spring practice but never playing in a game for the Wildcats before moving to Alpharetta.

Almost immediately, scholarship offers started to roll in. During the summer, he received his first offer, ironically from the now-defunct team UAB. “I went to their camp,” Moore said, “and when I threw in front of (the UAB coaches), they said I was the most smooth thrower they saw all summer.” Shortly thereafter, Oregon State and Marshall offered.

Moore was not handed the starting job right away — he split time under center in the Eagles’ run-heavy Pistol offense — but that did nothing to deter recruiters. Moore now carries 175 pounds on his lanky, 6-foot-2-inch frame, is a legitimate running threat because of his 4.55 speed in the 40 and his vision.

“I can hurt a defense in many ways,” Moore said. “I’m dangerous from the pocket — that’s what I built my game around. I can run, but I’m a passer first, so I’m looking downfield at all times. Whenever a play breaks down, I’m a guy who can stand in the pocket all game long, but then when we need a first down, I can run, too. But being a quarterback means throwing the ball, first and foremost, and that’s what I’m best at.”

As is the case with many young players, success inspires comparisons. In Moore’s case, people have suggested he inspires images of a young Russell Wilson, Ryan Tannehill or Deshaun Watson — the rising Clemson star who started his career with the Tigers under Morris.

Moore’s offers have come from across the country, from Utah to Wake Forest, from Eastern Michigan to Oregon State. But he had a desire to go somewhere familiar. He looked hard at SMU and Houston, and had a familiarity with Morris and offensive coordinator Joe Craddock, a relationship that dated back to when Morris recruited Moore to Clemson. In addition, he missed Texas.

“For me, it was an easy choice,” Moore said. “The area of Dallas, Texas is beautiful. That, and my relationship with Coach Craddock and Coach Morris is like my relationship with my high school coaches, as far as being able to reach out to them, to talk to them about anything.

“In the recruiting world, some people are not always the most honest people out there, but Coach Morris and Coach Craddock are. Those guys have been very honest, very straightforward with me from day one.”

In addition to his football ability, Moore has done his homework. Not just the academic kind (he said he plans to major in something in the Cox School of Business); he has studied the team he is joining, including the players who will be joining the team next season.

“They have some good receivers now, and the guys they have coming in next year — they’re players,” Moore said. “Xavier (Castille), Alex (Honey), James (Proché) … they’re part of the reason I committed.”

Quarterback David Moore spent the spring of his sophomore year at Guyer High School in Denton, Texas, where one of his teammates was incoming SMU freshman receiver Alex Honey (photo by Moore family).

Honey, in particular, is an appealing teammate for Moore. When Moore spent his sophomore spring season at Guyer High School, he and Honey clicked on and off the field.

“I threw for something like 275 yards in our spring game, and I think about 250 of that was to Alex,” Moore said. “He’s a great player, and I’m excited about getting a chance to play with him again. I don’t know the other guys like I know (Honey), but I know how good all those guys are. They’re game-changers.”

If his familiarity with his future teammates weren’t enough, Moore said he already has reached out to several top high school players in Texas, imploring them to join him on the Hilltop in 2016.

“Part of why I committed is because I want to be the guy that helps build that program back up,” Moore said. “We’re going to get players — we’re going to get great players. Coach Morris is a great coach and he can recruit anyone, but as a quarterback, it’s my job to help lead, so if I can talk to a great player and get him to join me, I will.

“(The coaches) talked to me about doing for SMU what (Robert Griffin III) did for Baylor. He brought that program to national prominence, and that’s what I plan to do at SMU, too. We’re going to get great recruits, we have a great offense, we have great coaches, Coach Morris graduates all of his players … we’re going to be good.”

Moore even addressed reports that questioned his commitment to SMU because of previous interest he had in Texas A&M and Arizona State.

“I talked about this for a long time with Coach Morris,” Moore said. “He said he didn’t want me to commit if I wasn’t ready, and we talked about what it means to be committed. He said if I'm all in, they're all in and wouldn't recruiting another quarterback.

"Growing up, those were schools I had interest in, but things change. I committed to SMU for a reason. If I had wanted to wait and see how things play out somewhere else, I would have, but I didn’t. I’m committed to SMU 100 percent, and I don’t see that changing.”