ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, November 09, 1996 TAG: 9611110079
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: KEITH POMPEY STAFF WRITER|
MEMO: NOTE: Slightly different version ran in NRV edition.
P.J. MOYER, a running back for Roanoke Catholic, finishes his career as Timesland's second-leading career rusher.
In 1992, Roanoke Catholic High School's football team averaged 60 yards a game on the ground.
Four years later, a Celtics running back had a legitimate shot at breaking Timesland's career rushing record.
P.J. Moyer rushed for 144 yards in Friday night's 26-0 loss to Brunswick Academy to finish in second place with 5,759 career yards. Former Bath County running back Tim Williams has the record, with 5,797 yards.
``I couldn't be more thrilled to have a running back that has a chance of being the best in Timesland, especially since I have been through the good and the bad times,'' said John Cooke, Catholic's coach, before Friday's game. ``When P.J. was in the eighth grade, our offense averaged very few rushing yards a game and I was thinking, `What have we got to do''' to improve?
``I saw a lot of potential in P.J. I saw a lot of great speed. But I didn't think he would be that good and that he would have this much of an effect on a program.''
No one did.
Moyer wasn't expected to attend Roanoke Catholic. As a student at Lucy Addison Middle School, Moyer dreamed of playing football for Salem High School. During those days, he would cheer for his older brother, Keith - then a Spartans wide receiver.
``I wanted to play for Salem so bad,'' P.J. Moyer said.
It never happened.
Moyer tried to transfer to Salem for the 1991-92 school year and was denied admission. He lived in the Northwest section of Roanoke and was told that was the William Fleming High School zone.
P.J.'s father, Paul, an assistant coach at Roanoke Catholic, blames it on ``politics.'' Paul Moyer said the City of Roanoke's public schools didn't want to lose another great athlete to Salem.
The younger Moyer's career at Catholic didn't start out successfully. His parents didn't think he was mature enough for the ninth grade, so they made him repeat the eighth. Plus, he hated the school, missed his childhood friends and thought his father was crazy for sending him there.
After playing football for a strong team in the Inner City recreation program, he was on a Celtics squad with a 20-game losing streak.
``It was kind of hard to adjust from being in one atmosphere, then going to another,'' P.J. Moyer said. ``I had to come over here and play on a losing team. That kind of brought me down.
``And when you hear about Catholic school, you hear about nuns and stuff. I really didn't feel like being bothered.''
Moyer didn't try to hide his displeasure. As an eighth-grader at Roanoke Catholic, he rushed for 202 yards, but was labeled a ``disciplinary problem,'' Cooke said, and was on academic suspension for the last game of the 1991 season.
``The school work was kind of hard,'' Moyer said. ``It wasn't like public school, where you get to pick out your own classes. Over at Catholic they picked them out for you. And unlike public school, if you fail one class, you are suspended'' from athletics.
Moyer began to adjust to the environment at Roanoke Catholic after he was diagnosed with a learning disability.
The problem was diagnosed as short-term memory deficiency, said Dee Moyer, P.J.'s mother. ``He would learn something real fast and then he wouldn't retain it,'' she said. ``... Some people never get rid of it. But since P.J.'s was picked up during the early stages, it could be cured and it was.''
Moyer receives private tutoring to help with his class work. He also uses a different study method. Instead of reading something, Moyer writes it out repeatedly. After receiving special treatment, P.J. decided attending Roanoke Catholic wasn't so bad after all.
As a sophomore, he did things on the football field his friends at Salem only dreamed of - like rushing for 1,796 yards in 12 games, being named Timesland's Sizzlin' Sophomore Offensive Player of the Year and leading the Celtics to the 1994 Virginia Independent Schools Division II championship.
``He was 90 percent of the reason we went undefeated that season,'' Cooke said of Moyer, who had 3,220 yards and 39 touchdowns after three seasons. ``Not to say that the other kids on the team weren't that good, but if you could have seen the highlight film from that year, you would have seen him drive through the line, cut back against the grain and sprint 60 yards for a touchdown over and over again. If we wouldn't have had P.J. doing what he did that year, we wouldn't have won the championship.
``But the great thing about P.J. is that it didn't stop there. That year we had a pretty good offensive line. Afterward, the talent on the line hasn't been as good. Sometimes teams stack 10 men on the line of scrimmage. But he still gets his yardage.''
Heading into this season, Moyer had 4,411 yards and 56 touchdowns. The Roanoke Times ranked him as one of its top 50 college prospects in Virginia. The three-time VIS All-State selection has received more than 70 letters from the University of Nebraska's football program.
``I thought this year was going to be a great year,'' said Moyer, 17. ``I was getting all of the attention. And I was working out, lifting weights during the summer.''
Moyer learned that with all of the attention comes the pressure to produce. So far, his production has been spotty. One week, Moyer had 191 yards. Then he came back the next and rushed for 56. The past two weeks, Moyer was held to 80 and 95 yards, respectively. He went into Friday's game ranked 14th in the area, averaging 120 yards rushing per game.
Moyer said his inconsistency was a combination of a back injury suffered during the summer, an inexperienced offensive line and the pressures of trying to qualify academically for a college scholarship.
He worries about getting the score of 820 or better on the Scholastic Assessment Test the NCAA requires for athletic-based financial aid. Moyer scored a 680 on the timed test in the 11th grade. He's scheduled to retake the SAT in December. Because of his learning disability, he qualified to take the test without a time limit.
VMI has expressed interest, however, the Keydets await his SAT scores before offering a scholarship.
``I know if I don't get a reasonable score, then I'm not going anywhere,'' Moyer said. ``Getting rushing yards and breaking the record is big, but that's for the newspapers. The SATs determines my future. That's putting a lot of pressure on me. But my goal is to get 1,000 on the test. If I get a 1,000 on the SATs, then I can go anywhere. If I don't get a good score, then I'll have to see about going to Fork Union or a junior college.''
LENGTH: Long : 125 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: ERIC BRADY. 1. Staff Roanoke Catholic running back P.J.by CNBMoyer, shown her breaking tackles against Lynchburg Christian
Academy, rushed for 144 yards Friday night to finish with 5,759 for
his career with the Celtics. color. 2. Running back P.J. Moyer
wasn't initially sold on the ide of attending Roanoke Catholic. His
father, Paul (right), is glad he forced the issue. Moyer missed
setting Timesland's all-time career rushing record by 39 yards,
finishing with 5,759.