Moss brings leadership to Rams

D'Andra Moss, a 6-0 forward from Duluth, Ga., averages 9.5 points and 6.2 rebounds.

D'Andra Moss was inclined to lead from the moment she first set foot on the Virginia Commonwealth University campus. Her teammates, however, weren't always inclined to follow.

"I've always been the talking type," said Moss, a multitalented junior forward. "Some people might say that sometimes I talk too much -- and you know what? They might be right. But that's me. That's who I am. I want to talk. I want to keep everybody motivated. I want to keep everybody level. I want to keep everybody humble."

Then she paused. "The thing I didn't understand when I was younger is: It's easy to talk, but it's not always easy to know when and how to talk. You can't talk, and you definitely can't lead, unless you have the respect of your teammates."

Needless to say, she has it now. Moss, 6-0 and nicely chiseled, is the Rams' physical and emotional standard-bearer. Garrulous nature notwithstanding, she leads primarily by example. She averages 9.5 points and 6.2 rebounds as a frontcourt reserve. But her most valuable contributions come in practice. There, she tolerates nothing less than maximum effort from herself and those around her.

"I take my [leadership] role very seriously," said Moss, a two-time all-state performer at Norcross High School in Duluth, Ga. "I want to hold everyone -- and that includes me -- fully accountable for their actions at all times."

It shows. Rams coach Beth Cunningham said Moss "always plays with tremendous intensity and passion, whether she's practicing or in a game. I can't tell you how many times I've run into coaches who've played against us or scouted us and had them tell me, 'Oh, man -- what I wouldn't give to have just one kid like [Moss] on my roster.'"

Moss' value to the 12-3 Rams is best illustrated by her acceptance of her off-the-bench role. She likely would start for any other team in the Colonial Athletic Association, Old Dominion included. Cunningham concedes that Moss deserves to start. But since the Rams' current group is functioning so well . . .

"It doesn't matter, and it doesn't bother me," said Moss, who contributed 20 points and six rebounds in Sunday's 81-48 road conquest of CAA rival James Madison. "I trust my coaches and I'll do whatever they ask. Worrying about whether or not I start -- that's not my job. My job is to play. I'll leave the executive decisions to someone else."

Moss, an imposing presence on the floor, is wryly perceptive off it. She says she likely would have enlisted in the Navy had basketball not taken her to college. Enlistment after graduation, she said, is not out of the question.

"I've always been intrigued by the military," she said. "By the discipline. The regimentation. The opportunity to serve my country." But why the Navy? She laughed. "I'm a Pisces. Doesn't it make sense that I'd be attracted to water?"