Paul Moala (born January 31, 2000)[1] is an American professional football linebacker who is a free agent. He played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Idaho Vandals, and Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born: | January 31, 2000[1] Mishawaka, Indiana, U.S. |
| Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
| Weight: | 229 lb (104 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Penn (Mishawaka, Indiana) |
| College: | Notre Dame (2018–2021) Idaho (2022) Georgia Tech (2023) |
| Position: | Linebacker |
| Undrafted: | 2024 |
| Career history | |
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |
Early life and high school
editMoala attended high school at Penn. Coming out of high school, Moala was rated as a three star recruit, and the 20th overall prospect in the State of Indiana.[2] Moala also held offers from schools such as Notre Dame, Iowa, Hawaii, Air Force, Utah State.[3] Ultimitely, Moala decided to commit to play college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.[4][5]
College career
editNotre Dame
editDuring the 2018 season, Moala played in seven games where he made one tackle.[6] In week 13 of the 2019 season, Moala returned a fumble 27 yards for a touchdown, in a win over Navy.[7] In the 2019 season, Moala totaled 14 tackles with one being for a loss, a fumble recovery, a forced fumble, and a touchdown.[8] During the 2020 season, Moala played in just three games where he had seven tackles before tearing his Achilles.[9] In the 2021 season, Moala played in just one game before tearing his Achilles once again.[10] After the conclusion of the 2021 season, Moala decided to enter his name into the NCAA transfer portal.[11][12]
Idaho
editMoala decided to transfer to play for the Idaho Vandals.[13][14] During the 2022 season, Moala had a breakout year, totaling 61 tackles with seven being for a loss, five pass deflections, four interceptions, and a forced fumble.[15] After the conclusion of the 2022 season, Moala decided to enter his name into the NCAA transfer portal once again.[16][17]
Georgia Tech
editMoala transferred to play his final season at Georgia Tech.[18][19] During Moala's lone season with Georgia Tech, he notched 65 tackles with 11 being for a loss, four sacks, two pass deflections, and three forced fumbles.[20] After the conclusion of the 2023 season, Moala decided to declare for the 2024 NFL draft.[21]
Statistics
edit| Year | Team | Games | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Total | Solo | Ast | Sack | PD | Int | Yds | TD | FF | FR | TD | ||
| 2018 | Notre Dame | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | Notre Dame | 12 | 0 | 14 | 6 | 8 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2020 | Notre Dame | 3 | 0 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | Notre Dame | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2022 | Idaho | 12 | 11 | 61 | 29 | 32 | 2.0 | 5 | 4 | 21 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2023 | Georgia Tech | 13 | 13 | 65 | 37 | 28 | 4.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | 48 | 24 | 148 | 78 | 70 | 6.0 | 7 | 4 | 21 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | |
Professional career
edit| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 0+1⁄5 in (1.83 m) |
230 lb (104 kg) |
31+3⁄4 in (0.81 m) |
9+1⁄4 in (0.23 m) |
4.76 s | 1.57 s | 2.70 s | 4.39 s | 7.18 s | 36 in (0.91 m) |
9 ft 10 in (3.00 m) | ||
| All values from Pro Day[22] | ||||||||||||
After not being selected in the 2024 NFL draft, Moala decided to sign with the Chicago Bears as an undrafted free agent.[23][24] He was waived on August 26.[25]
References
edit- ^ a b "Paul Moala". ourlads.com. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Farmer, Douglas (December 20, 2017). "Notre Dame gets the letter: Paul Moala, local safety". NBC Sports. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ James, Tyler (June 11, 2017). "Local safety Paul Moala earns Notre Dame offer at Irish Invasion". The Reporter-Times. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ James, Tyler (October 22, 2017). "Local safety Paul Moala commits to Notre Dame". The Herald-Times. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Farmer, Douglas (July 14, 2018). "Notre Dame 99-to-2: No. 13 Paul Moala, local safety, incoming freshman". NBC Sports. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Farmer, Douglas (July 27, 2021). "Notre Dame 99-to-0: No. 13 Paul Moala, senior linebacker coming off an Achilles injury". NBC Sports. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Pixley, Trevon (September 9, 2022). "Midwest return: For Idaho linebacker Paul Moala, it'll be a homecoming in Indiana". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ "Paul Moala 2019 Game Logs". Sports Reference. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Farmer, Douglas (October 12, 2020). "Notre Dame defensive flux continues with LB Paul Moala out for the year". NBC Sports. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Engel, Patrick (April 6, 2022). "Newsstand: Former Notre Dame LB Paul Moala picks transfer destination". On3.com. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Waddell, Samantha (January 10, 2022). "Penn alum and Irish senior LB Paul Moala to transfer". WSBT.com. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Clark, Geoffrey (January 2, 2022). "Notre Dame punter Bramblett, linebacker Moala enter transfer portal". Fighting Irish Wire. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Harriman, Peter (August 25, 2022). "Idaho transfers Paul Moala and Juliano Falaniko come from two sides of storied rivalry to team up on Vandals' defense". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ McKinnell, Zach (June 14, 2022). "FORMER NOTRE DAME LB PAUL MOALA TRANSFERS TO IDAHO". The Bluebloods. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Sugiura, Ken. "Linebacker Paul Moala transfers to Georgia Tech from Idaho". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Green, Travis (April 25, 2023). "Idaho linebacker Paul Moala enters transfer portal". KREM.com. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Pixley, Trevon (April 26, 2023). "UI loses another defensive centerpiece to the portal". Moscow Pullman Daily-News. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Bishop, Chad. "Linebacker Paul Moala ready to shine for Georgia Tech". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Caudell, Jackson (May 16, 2023). "Former Notre Dame And Idaho Linebacker Paul Moala Commits To Georgia Tech". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Caudell, Jackson (April 29, 2024). "Georgia Tech Linebacker Paul Moala Receives Rookie Mini Camp Invite From The Chicago Bears". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Caudell, Jackson (December 9, 2023). "Georgia Tech Linebacker Paul Moala Officially Declares for 2024 NFL Draft". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ "2024 NFL Draft Scout Paul Moala College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Caudell, Jackson (May 13, 2024). "Former Georgia Tech Linebacker Paul Moala Signs With the Chicago Bears After Rookie Minicamp Tryout". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Bishop, Chad (April 29, 2024). "Former Georgia Tech linebacker gets shot with Chicago Bears". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved June 3, 2024.
- ^ Mayer, Larry (August 26, 2024). "Roster Moves: Bears waive nine players". ChicagoBears.com.