Sept. 14, 2005

LAS VEGAS - UNLV defensive end Leon Moore was one of only 11 players in the nation named to the 2005 American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Division I-A Good Works Team, the Waco, Texas-based organization announced Wednesday.

A senior from Las Vegas and graduate of Rancho High School, Moore is the third Rebel ever selected to the prestigious collection of student-athletes that has been honored for its performance off the field for the last 14 years. Former UNLV lineman Tony Terrell was the first honoree in 2002 and two-time All-American safety Jamaal Brimmer earned the nod last season.

"It is an honor to do the things I'm allowed to do in the community," Moore said. "I look at it as a privilege. The kids really appreciate me coming out but it is also a lot of fun for me. I went to school in Las Vegas and I remember when UNLV sent basketball players to visit us. I always thought I would do something similar if I got the chance and I have been lucky enough to do just that in my own home town. It feels good to carry on the tradition that Jamaal and Tony left behind and I want to thank Wendy Wallington (of UNLV Athletics) for all of her hard work and help during my career."

UNLV was the lone representative from the Mountain West Conference on this year's team and stands as the only school to have a player on both the 2004 and '05 team.

"Leon has worked extremely hard for five years here to make a difference in his community," said Wallington who oversees UNLV Athletics' community relations efforts. "He is as deserving as anyone who has worn the Scarlet & Gray uniform. Having three community All-Americans in the last four years shows how far we have come in our efforts to reach out to the community."

Nominated by their school's sports information directors and voted on by an AFCA committee, successful candidates must be involved in working for charity and/or service. During his career, Moore has volunteered his time to Rebel Football Plays Santa, which sees the team adopt a local needy family and then delivers gifts near the holidays, acted as a guest activities director at Camp Cartwheel, which is a summer program for the Nevada Childhood Cancer Foundation, and has made numerous visits to area schools to read to students and speak about sportsmanship and the importance of staying in school. He also has taken special interest in the Backpacks 2 Go program, which is a unique initiative sponsored by the local group Communities in Schools. Backpacks 2 Go workers fill backpacks full of ready-to-eat, non-perishable, healthy foods, which are then distributed to children from three elementary schools located in at-risk areas in North Las Vegas, to take home over the weekend.

On the field, Moore is a former freshman All-America pass rusher who currently leads the MWC in sacks with three and ranks seventh on the school's career list with 14.

"The AFCA is proud to recognize these student-athletes for the good things they do in their communities," Executive Director Grant Teaff said.

2005 AFCA DIVISION I-A GOOD WORKS TEAM®
Name            Yr.   Pos.  School    Hometown (High School)
Shawn Bell      Jr.   QB    Baylor    China Spring, Tex. (China Spring)Parys Haralson  Sr.   DE    Tennessee Flora, Miss. (Madison Central)Will Herring    Jr.   FS    Auburn    Opelika, Ala. (Opelika)Doug Justice    Sr.   LB    North Carolia Port Orange, Fla. (Spruce Creek)Mark LeFlore    Sr.   WR    Nebraska  Omaha, Neb. (Central)Victor Mann     Sr.   FB    Kansas State Fort Worth, Tex. (Country Day)Leon Moore      Sr.   DE    UNLV      Las Vegas, Nev. (Rancho)Dan Nelson      Jr.   LB    UCLA      Boise, Idaho (Centennial)D.J. Shockley   Sr.   QB    Georgia   College Park, Ga. (North Clayton)Matt Traina     Sr.   OL    Tulane    Coral Gables, Fla. (Coral Gables)Vince Young     Jr.   QB    Texas     Houston, Tex. (Madison)