Moore’s Fullerton Shot Delayed by a Gunshot : Recruit Recovers From Bullet Wound and Is Expected at Titan Camp Today

When he first felt the sharp pain in his left thigh, Michael Moore, a Cal State Fullerton recruit who was jogging in preparation for his first day as a Titan, thought he had pulled a hamstring.

Seconds later, he fell to the ground in his San Bernardino neighborhood, the victim, he said, of a stray gunshot.

“I was out jogging, taking my routine route, and this man and his woman were arguing,” said Moore, a Riverside City College transfer who hopes to help the Titans replace their all-time leading rusher, Rick Calhoun.

“I didn’t pay any mind to them and went jogging by, but I got about 10 yards from her and I heard about six shots. I didn’t know I was shot until my leg locked up and I fell down.”

The injury--which occurred Saturday--and the completion of his junior college degree have prevented Moore from taking part in the Titan rookie drills, which opened Tuesday. But both Moore and Titan Coach Gene Murphy said he is expected to join the other rookies in workouts today.

The first full-squad practice is scheduled for Saturday, and Murphy said the team will begin hitting Aug. 19 in preparation for its Sept. 5 opener at Hawaii.

Moore said doctors told him he would not be able to walk for two weeks, but he has already resumed jogging. He is to have his stitches removed Monday.

“I was in the wrong place at the wrong time,” said Moore, a criminal justice major who called the neighborhood “a little rough,” and lists his career goal as police officer.

Moore said that the bullet had to be removed from his leg at the hospital, and that he reported the incident to police. That report was not available Wednesday night.

“One day before I was supposed to leave (for Fullerton) and that thing had to happen,” Moore said.

Moore, who is 5-feet 9-inches tall and weighs 185 pounds, was California’s junior college offensive player of the year in 1986 and helped lead Riverside City to a 10-1 record and a No. 3 national ranking. He rushed for a school-record 1,425 yards, scoring 11 touchdowns.

He hopes to challenge Tracey Pierce, a senior who gained 55 yards on 25 carries last season, and is at the head of a group hoping to replace Calhoun that also includes Jon Bell, Keith Bowman, Eric Franklin and Stephen Tart.

“I’m hoping they’ve got some room for me,” Moore said.