We knew Marcellus Moore was a very special and supremely talented and humble young man when he burst on national middle school track and field scene as an 11-year-old yearling with the famed Aurora Flyers Track Club.
The legendary Head Coach Thomas Boatright made it known as soon as the sun rose on the stadium at Illinois Benedictine University during the summer of 2016, his prodigy Moore was going to do something special. The 13-year-old Moore actually cruised to victory in the 100m and 200m USATF IL State Association Championship races. It wasn't until he switched over to the AAU format later in that incredible summer, Moore won the 14-year-old national 100m title in Humble, TX. Amongst his victims would be Ashton Allen of the fabled Bullis, MD, juggernaut.
Marcellus' first interview with MileSplit Illinois
Event 14 Boys 100 Meter Dash 14 years old
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National: N 10.81 1995 Jason Hodge, Giddings, TX
Name Year Team Finals Wind
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Finals
1 Marcellus Moore 02 Plainfield, IL 10.81N 0.5
2 Elijah Howard 02 Knoxville, TN 10.83 0.5
3 Dennis Phillips 02 Prosper, TX 10.96 0.5
4 Ashton Allen 02 Odenton, MD 10.99 0.5
5 Jaleel Scott 02 Austin, TX 11.06 0.5
6 Bryson Stubblefield 02 Stafford, TX 11.09 0.5
7 Isaiah Teer 02 Arlington, TX 11.28 0.5
8 Kesean Brown 02 Gainesville, FL 11.37 0.5
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It didn't take long for Moore to get acquainted with the high school scene and Hall of Fame Coach Tony Holler's system. Moore ran the fastest 100 and second-best 200 times in the nation as a freshman dropping 10.40w and 21.28. Moore's only loss to an Illinois competitor was to double state champion Declan Rustay of Hoffman Estates. Over the next two seasons, Moore would dominate his state foes- burning the track for an all-time best 10.31 as a sophomore. If there was a competitive edge that Moore had over his peers was the lathering up that he took during the indoor track campaigns. He ran well against the nation's best all over the country (New Balance Indoor Nationals) and the world (NSAF sponsored events).
However, as with most sprint stars, they play football. The speedy Moore is not a statured athlete, standing only 5'6" and weighing nearly 150lbs. But he was good enough to capture the eyes of some Power 5 conference teams such as Purdue, Nebraska, U of Kentucky, and U of Illinois. "Football and track will go hand and hand," said Marcellus' father Christopher Moore. Does that mean Marcellus will split time with football and track over the years? "Well, when we were looking at schools, we looked at the whole spectrum which included academics," he added.
The prized school is... Purdue University. The Boilermakers athletics program appear to be headed in the right direction as far as Moore is concerned. The football program has gone to bowl games the last two seasons and they play a game conducive to Moore's style. The track team is coming off of an outstanding season in which they set a number of school records and racked up a slew of All-American honors.
Moore indicated that he would like to be a sports agent one day after his playing career is over. Aside from that, he has amassed 19 hours of college credit. He is eligible to graduate in December and join the Boilermakers in January for classes and spring football. As for track and field, Moore would stay fit with open competition and leave the door open for another round of junior competition. If he is fortunate, the Olympic Games will be waiting down the road in 2024.
It appears as though Moore has accomplished everything he could as a high schooler, including a world junior record as a member of Team USA 4x100m relay that competed in the recent U20s Pan-Am Games. He will go down in state annals as a legend and as someone who made everyone around him better.