Kapron Lewis-Moore knows all about Bob Diaco, Purdue’s new defensive coordinator.

He played three seasons (2010-13) on the defensive line for the Fighting Irish when Diaco was the coordinator at Notre Dame.

When Diaco arrived and installed a 3-4 alignment in 2010, the 6-4, 315-pound Lewis-Moore was switched from tackle to end for his redshirt sophomore season. He started all 13 games that season and made 62 tackles, which was fifth on the team and first among defensive linemen.

In 2011, Lewis-Moore was limited to seven games with a knee injury. Still, he notched 32 tackles. In 2012 as a fifth-year senior, Lewis-Moore was named a captain and helped lead the Fighting Irish ti the BCS title game, where they lost to Alabama. The Diaco coordinated defense was a big reason why ND reached the title game. Lewis-Moore finished the season with 40 tackles, including eight and a half for loss and six sacks, while forcing two fumbles.

The Irish ranked second in the country in points allowed per game (12.8) as Diaco was named the Broyles Award winner as the nation’s top assistant coach. That helped him get the head coaching job at UConn.

GoldandBlack.com spoke to Lewis-Moore—a four-star recruit from Texas who was a sixth-round pick of the Ravens in the 2013 NFL draft—to get a first-hand perspective on a Diaco-led defense.

GoldandBlack.com: What scheme did Diaco run when you were at Notre Dame.

Lewis-Moore: It was a 3-4 mainly but there were a bunch of 4-3 principles, too. In the 3-4, I was an end. This was back in 2011, 2012, so things may be different now. But that’s what we did. It was one of things: do your job. You have a pretty good defense if everyone does their job right.

GoldandBlack.com: Did you blitz and gamble much as a defense?

Lewis-Moore: We blitzed a little bit, but we weren’t like the (former ND defensive coordinator) Jon Tenuta years before that when we blitzed every play. But we blitzed a little bit.

GoldandBlack.com: What’s Diaco’s personality like on the field?

Lewis-Moore: You get a feel for that already, right? He is really fiery. The one thing I do respect about Diaco is he is the same person every day. He is gonna be the same guy day in, day out. And you know what you’re gonna get out of him. You are gonna get a fiery guy, a competitive guy. The hair is always gonna be fresh, always clean cut guy. I will say that.

GoldandBlack.com: What’s the key personnel to make Diaco’s 3-4 scheme work?

Lewis-Moore: I am a little biased, but I think if you have a good line . You have to get those two-gap players. You need a pretty solid line that can knock the offensive line back and let your ‘backers get free and make some plays. I think you can be a pretty good defense.

GoldandBlack.com: So, you need a big line?

Lewis-Moore: Big line, need a big, solid nose tackle to clog up the middle. I played with Stephon Tuitt and Louis Nix. Big guys. We were well over 300 in the front. Me, Tuitt Nix, Prince Shembo. He was more of the gap position. He was the quick end. He was about 260, 250. You need some good linebackers, too. Run and hit, for sure for sure.

GoldandBlack.com: Was Diaco effective at making half-time adjustments?

Lewis-Moore: I think so. There were a number of games when the opposition got us on a couple of plays and we adjusted pretty well at halftime. I remember in 2012, our defense played really well, especially down the stretch.

GoldandBlack.com: What else stood out to you about Diaco?

Lewis-Moore: His press conferences, and his phrases and things he says are second-to-none. He might be all over the place, but there is some truth to what he is saying. I loved playing for him, I loved his intensity, I loved his attention to detail. I think Purdue got a pretty good defensive coordinator.

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