Years ago, while Mora coached the Atlanta Falcons, former player Warrick Dunn told Mora that he should coach college football. The NFL, Dunn said, was no place for a man of his ideals.

During those months on the Washington campus, he reflected on Dunn’s comment. He would have long, detailed conversations about student life, about the uphill climb of finding who you are and what it all means — a lost and overlooked reality of college kids living on their own for the first time.

"I was inspired by how they dealt with the problems they had; how they handled the struggles and demands of college life," Mora said. "That just kind of sucked me in. I knew right then I wanted to be with this age group."