Opinions of Kestahn Moore couldn't be any more different inside and out of UF's program.
Inside, he's a respected veteran leader. Coaches love him, and it's a rarity Urban Meyer will walk past the senior without giving him a pat on the back or a kind word.
Outside, fans ridicule him, picking out every misstep or flaw. They rip him on message boards, and many say they'd rather see the other running backs line up in the backfield.
He even has a hate club on Facebook.
Moore has averaged more than five yards per carry during his career in Gainesville, and while that hasn't been enough to earn the adoration of Gators fans, he has won over his teammates and coaches with hard work and reliability on and off the field.
"He's one of my favorite people," Meyer said. "H has had a good career, probably not a great one in people's minds. He does a lot for a program, and I'm hoping for him to have a great year this year. I love Kestahn Moore."
After three seasons filled with ups and downs, there are mixed opinions on Moore's performance, but, like it or not, he's still UF's starting running back.
With a little luck and some help from a former player who has been in his shoes, Moore says he's ready to turn the corner and establish his place among the beloved backs who have passed through The Swamp.
"I want to be remembered as that person who never gave up and always goes hard," Moore said. "I want to be remembered as a leader on and off the field, and I want to show people that I can go. People don't really see how fast I am or that I can break the long ones. I want to show them because I think I'm going to break some long ones this year."
Peaks and Valleys
With 16 starts, 1,137 yards, nine touchdowns and 5.6 yards per carry in his college career, Moore has achieved plenty of positives during his time in Gainesville, but most fans recall just four plays - three fumbles and a bad snap - from losses to LSU and Georgia last season.
In 2007, Moore got off to a promising start, gaining 169 yards with four touchdowns in blowout wins against Western Kentucky and Troy.
He had double-digit carries in six games and looked like he had finally found his stride at LSU in October. His 15-yard gain set up an early UF field goal, he caught a touchdown pass in the second quarter and he added 22 more yards on another Gators touchdown drive.
The coaches' confidence in Moore grew as the game went on, and in the third quarter, leading by 10, they turned to him to keep the offense and clock moving.
He ripped off consecutive runs of eight, 11 and four yards to kick off a UF drive, but disaster was right around the corner.
He took a first-down handoff up the middle and fumbled near midfield. The Tigers recovered, killing a promising drive, and the Gators wouldn't score again in the 28-24 loss.
The fumble spoiled an otherwise great game: 79 yards on 12 carries with a touchdown against the best defense in college football, but even that isn't Moore's most painful memory from the season.
Mention the Georgia game and his infectious smile evaporates, replaced with disappointment.
"Last year's Georgia game was a low point for me," he said. "That fumble," then his voice trails off and he takes a deep breath. "That's it."
Moore picked up 20 yards on UF's opening drive but fumbled at the Georgia 33 yard line, starting a Bulldogs drive that ended with the entire team celebrating a score in the end zone.
Things didn't get much better for Moore as the contest wore on, as a Gators drive stalled after the ball was snapped over his head for a 12-yard loss, and another bad snap bounced off his shoulder into enemy hands at the Bulldog 11 on his team's final possession.
Georgia won the game 42-30, and those crucial mistakes erased any good memories of Moore for UF fans.
"In this offense, you already know you ain't getting the ball after that," Moore said. "I was frustrated, like, 'Damn, no ball for me anymore.' When you fumble, even in practice, we do a thing where you go 100 yards with two footballs in your hands and you fall on your forearms every five yards."
Although those were his only two fumbles on the season (the bad snap was credited to the team), Moore is frequently criticized for them. It's clear that the subject strikes a nerve with coaches, and running backs coach Kenny Carter is quick to strike down the notion that Moore has an issue with fumbling.
"He fumbled in two games and everybody harps on that he's had problems fumbling," Carter said. "He had two fumbles that were critical and really made a difference. You can't fumble, but we moved on from that. Everybody makes mistakes and has things happen, but if you keep harping on that, nothing ever goes on."
The Ninja Turtle
It's hard to imagine a player could be perceived as differently as Moore is from the locker room to the bleachers.
While many fans berate him, teammates laud him for his hardworking nature, and coaches fawn over his leadership and good behavior.
"He's one of those guys you can count on," Carter said. "Urban talks all the time about being accountable within the system and in the program and being a guy to hang your hat on. That's what Kestahn is. That's how you win championships and games, when you have guys like that. You try to make everybody else in your program look at that example and continue to do those kinds of things to get us where we need to be."
Moore is referred to as an unsung hero, a player whose contributions can't all be found on the stat sheet, and perhaps his most respected role on the team is that of lead blocker on kickoff returns.
Moore starts next to returner Brandon James, and once the kick is received, he dashes 30 yards to meet his blocking assignment head-on at full speed.
"He does a phenomenal job," James said. "I wouldn't want to have anyone else back there with me. He sets it all up. People don't realize it, but I follow him. Really, if I return one it's a credit to him because I follow wherever he's going and follow his blocks."
Moore started the job in high school when opposing teams stopped kicking to him and he became the de facto blocker. He grew to like the job and told coaches in Gainesville he was up for the task.
In fact, Moore might be hard-wired for the position. His thick, broad shoulders make him a solid blocker, and that physical trait has earned him a nickname as well.
"I always say he's built like a Ninja Turtle," defensive end Duke Lemmens said. "He just brings toughness, he's a great blocker and he's so accountable. Every kid on this team trusts him with the utmost respect."
"Little Ran"
Before the Ninja Turtle nickname caught on, Moore had another one. In his first season, a few teammates called him "Little Ran" for his resemblance to a previous running back, Ran Carthon.
Moore wore the same number - 33 - and was just an inch and a few pounds away from being the exact same size as Carthon. It was coincidence at first, but Moore would have much more in common with Carthon than he could ever know.
During the offseason, many scoffed at Meyer's insistence that Moore would remain the starting tailback. Chris Rainey had gotten bigger, Emmanuel Moody was healthy and both had a knack for making big plays.
Freshman Jeff Demps was well-known for his blinding speed, and much more excitement surrounded the speedy trio. It seemed few fans wanted to see Moore line up beside or behind quarterback Tim Tebow.
Carthon faced a similar situation in his senior season, when DeShawn Wynn and Ciatrick Fason - younger, more dynamic players - were pushing him for playing time.
Last spring, Carthon was enrolled at UF to finish a sociology degree, and he and Moore crossed paths while using the same academic adviser.
"The media was ready to replace me with three talented young guys and it's basically the same thing Kestahn is going through," said Carthon, now a scout with the Atlanta Falcons. "I just reached out to him and told him I've been there before. It's just a matter of how you deal with it."
Both players say they welcomed the competition as a way to get better, and they don't harbor any resentment toward their teammates.
"It's not frustrating to me," Moore said. "I like it. I tell them to go out there and race to see who's the fastest. I'm not a jealous person. I'm always for the team, so if you have people like that who are fortunate and gifted to run a 4.2 - I wish I could run that, but they can help the team and that's why we recruit them."
Moore said he's OK with his teammates getting the hype and that negative talk doesn't bother him since he doesn't read newspapers or message boards, but Carthon knows from experience that the bad vibes can trickle in.
"It definitely gets frustrating, because you're like, 'Damn, I've broken my back for all these years to get where I'm at, and now I'm being written off and people don't want me here,'" he said. "I could tell when I told him that it kind of reached home. I don't know if he has expressed his feelings to anybody, but I could just look in his eyes and tell that what I told him hit home."
There has been talk of moving Moore into a fullback/tailback role where his Ninja Turtle frame can be utilized more for blocking, but he will still get carries.
While he knows touches will be hard to come by, Moore still hopes to grind out 1,000 yards this season. Doing so would make him the first 1,000-yard rusher since Fason in 2004, and it would be a big increase from his 578 yards in 2007.
But Moore has learned something from his quick understudies - it doesn't take a lot of carries to earn a lot of yards.
"That's my personal goal, and if I can pop some big ones like Demps and get 76 yards on two carries (Demps' stats from last week's game), it'll be a lot easier," Moore said with a laugh. "If I can get seven carries and pop a couple, I'll be good."
