The Lutheran North sophomore quarterback shouldered much of the blame for an 18-point season-opening loss six days ago.
He felt the need for redemption.
"I had to prove a lot — to my team," Moore said. "This week was about if you do make a bad play, just keep your head straight."
Moore made few, if any, bad plays on Thursday.
The 6-foot, 200-pound gunslinger threw for 301 yards and five touchdowns to lead the Crusaders to a 58-28 win over Blair Oaks in an early-season battle of ranked teams at Lutheran North.
Moore connected on 12 of 18 passes to help erase the memory of 30-12 loss to nationally ranked Phenix City Central of Alabama on Aug. 30.
In that curtain raiser, Moore was 4-of-10 for just 88 yards.
"There were two or three plays that we missed that were on him," Lutheran North coach Kyle Wagner said.
Moore certainly didn't miss much against Blair Oaks, which came into the contest ranked No. 1 in Class 3.
"Just watching him from the sidelines, it was great to see," said Lutheran North sophomore defensive back Kyren Evans, who spearheaded a solid defensive effort.
Moore guided the Crusaders (1-1) to scores on their first two possessions for a 16-0 lead after just 5 minutes and 35 seconds. He then put the game away with a three-score blitz over the opening 4:33 of the second half that put the hosts up 52-14.
This starkly contrasted with his debut, where he appeared unsure under pressure.
This time around, Moore was in total control from start to finish.
"For a sophomore, playing in his second game against a great program and a great team, he played his butt off," Wagner said. "I'm very proud of him."
Moore hit on nine of his first 11 passes to help his offense take control with seven touchdowns over the opening 28-plus minutes.
The Crusaders set the tone on their very first play from scrimmage. Moore connected with junior Mike Clark on a deep post pattern down the middle of the field for a 65-yard score.
Evans, who had a monster opening quarter, set up the score with a nifty one-on-one tackle of Blair Oaks junior running back Hayden Lackman on fourth down. The 5-foot-11 Evans set up the next score with the first of his two interceptions.
Just three plays after the initial pick, Moore connected with senior Trey Bass on a 19-yard pass to double the lead.
Evans' strong play might have gone unnoticed on a night when his offense scored eight touchdowns.
But Wagner appreciated the effort.
"Kyren has kind of been overlooked in our strong sophomore class," Wagner said. "He made his presence felt. I think he's become an all-state performer."
Evans felt his team needed to get off on the right foot. He helped the Crusaders do just that with three huge plays over the first six minutes.
"We had great energy at the start," Evans said. "Watching them on film, we knew what they were going to do."
Blair Oaks, which has won five state titles, the last in 2022, stayed within striking distance until the early blitz at the outset of the second half.
Junior running back Martez Stephenson broke off a 79-yard scoring run just 45 seconds into the third period. Karvon Jefferson picked off a pass on the Falcons' next play from scrimmage to set up a 21-yard scoring strike from Moore to Jaquiveon Whitfield. Moore essentially put away the game with a 23-yard lightning bolt to Bass just over two minutes later. Bass had three touchdowns.
Junior defensive tackle Ke'mell Salone also added a pair of big plays on defense for the winners.
Bass and Stephenson scored on TD runs of 79 and 78 yards in the second half. Jevon Blackman hit the end zone on a 28-yard run and also ran in five different two-point conversions.
Lutheran North ranked second in Class 4, displayed game-changing speed on both sides of the ball in overwhelming the Falcons (1-1), who still have legitimate state title hopes.
"We're not going to see a team this talented the rest of the year," Blair Oaks coach Ted LePage said. "One game does not a season make. We'll just go back to work tomorrow."
Paul Halfacre and Steve Overbey recap the Lutheran North victory over Blair Oak on Thursday evening
Lutheran North sophomore Kyren Evans (14) celebrates during a football game on September 5, 2024 at Lutheran North High School in ºüÀêÊÓƵ. Paul Halfacre, Post-Dispatch