Van's Syd Moore had a huge junior season, racking up 102 tackles, including 34 for loss. The standout defensive tackle is well on his way to eclipsing those numbers in 2012.

Moore, a 6-foot-1, 260-pound senior, led Van with 15 tackles and seven for loss in the Vandals' 42-27 win at Athens, and he's the ETSN.fm Dairy Queen Defensive Player of the Week.

Moore burst onto the scene during the 2011 campaign, becoming one of East Texas' top defensive linemen playing in front of linebacker Dalton Santos, who is now at Texas. As a senior, Moore is now the focal point of the Vandals' defense, and he's leading the team with 85 tackles and a jaw-dropping 27 tackles for loss, only seven short of his 12-game total from a year ago.

Moore's 27 tackles for loss lead East Texas and put him one ahead of Carthage defensive tackle and Texas A&M commit Isaiah Golden, who has 46 tackles, 26 for loss, and four sacks.

It's not often a defensive lineman -- much less an interior defensive lineman -- leads his team in tackles, but that's exactly what Moore is doing in 2012, which is especially impressive considering that with Santos gone, he is the highest priority for opposing offenses to game plan against.

Moore holds three Division I FBS offers: SMU, Texas State, and ULM. In addition to his defensive efforts, Moore has carried the ball 33 times for 181 yards and four touchdowns to give the Vandals an added dimension in their ground attack.

Moore and the Vandals, who are 6-1 overall and 2-0 in District 15-3A, host Brownsboro in a key 15-3A matchup Friday at Van Memorial Stadium.

Dairy Queen Defensive Players of the Week

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