Moore attended and graduated from the University of Virginia, where he was a two-sport athlete. He ranks second all-time in career receptions and holds the school record in the high jump. Moore's college jersey number was 87. He ranks second in Cavaliers history in career receiving yards with 2,504 and ranks first in receiving yards in a season with 1,190 yards set in 1990. The year before he had 848 yards on just 36 catches. He also scored 10 touchdowns in 1989 and followed that up with 13 in 1990.
Professional career
Moore was the Detroit Lions' first-round draft pick in 1991 and went on to shatter virtually all of Detroit's receiving records. He played in 145 games during 11 seasons in Detroit. Moore was a 4-time Pro Bowler. In 2010, Moore was inducted into the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame and the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame that same year.
Stats
He held Detroit's records for career receptions until it was surpassed by Calvin Johnson in the fifth week of the 2015 NFL season. On November 10, 2013, his touchdown catch record of 62 was surpassed by Johnson at Chicago. On December 8, 2013 Johnson also broke his career receiving yards record of 9,174. In 1995, he was selected the Lions' MVP on offense after breaking club marks in both catches and yards while scoring 14 touchdowns. His finest single-game performance came on December 4, 1995 against the Chicago Bears when he had a club record 14 catches for 183 yards, the fifth best total in Detroit history. He also was the last Lion to catch three TD passes in a game until Roy Williams matched the total during the 2005 season. One of Moore's and his teammates' more memorable games came on November 23, 1995 - in a classic Thanksgiving Day game against the Minnesota Vikings. Moore and fellow receivers Brett Perriman and Johnnie Morton all eclipsed the 100-yard receiving mark, running back Barry Sanders rushed for 138 yards, and quarterback Scott Mitchell passed for 410 yards in a 44-38 Lions' victory. Moore was a member of Lions’ squads who earned six playoff appearances in the 1990s. He was also a member of two teams that won the NFC Central division. Moore was selected to four Pro Bowls. He was the second player to have three 100-catch seasons. Also in 1995, Moore and teammate Brett Perriman became the first teammates in NFL history with more than 100 receptions in the same season. In his highly successful 1995 season, Moore caught a career-high 123 balls. In 1998, Herman Moore received the inaugural All-Iron Award for his performance in the annual Thanksgiving Day game in Detroit. Moore also played briefly for the New York Giants and finished his 12 NFL seasons with 670 receptions for 9,174 yards and 62 touchdowns. Herman Moore holds NFL records for both receptions and receiving yards on Thursday games.
