Bishop McLaughlin’s has replaced one former professional football player with another.
The Hurricanes promoted assistant Craig Moore to head football coach Tuesday, the school announced.
“When I first came over with Coach (Derrick) Alexander, our vision was to build a program, to really get the program to take off…” Moore said. “Now I get the opportunity.”
Like his predecessor, Moore has a strong football pedigree. The Immokalee native played collegiately at Mississippi State, got a shot with the San Diego Chargers and spent eight seasons in the Arena Football League. He coached the offensive and defensive lines last season for the Hurricanes.
Bishop McLaughlin received about 100 applications in the last week to replace Alexander, the former Florida State star and first-round pick who will remain on the Hurricanes staff as a consultant. School administrators quickly moved to interview Moore because of his credentials and familiarity with the program.
“By the end of the meeting, it was clear that we didn’t need to interview anybody else,” dean of students Joe Jasinski said.
Moore, 38, will take over the program immediately and plans to finish his coaching staff soon. He previously served as an assistant at Anclote and works at Land O’Lakes, where he handles disciplinary problems.
Bishop McLaughlin finished 2-8 last season but will return to independent play this fall.