If it’s true that everyone likes the underdog, the cast off nobody wanted who ends up making it big, could there be a more popular player anywhere than New England Patriots cornerback Sterling Moore?

Former SMU cornerback Sterling Moore made two game-saving plays to help lead the New England Patriots to Super Bowl XLVI next Sunday (photo by Patriots PR).

In the last week, football fans across the country have suddenly learned Moore’s name and seen his smile splashed across newspapers and television screens after the undrafted cornerback from SMU made two game-saving plays in the Patriots’ 23-20 victory over the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship Game. As the Ravens drove for what would have been the game-winning touchdown in the game’s final seconds, Baltimore quarterback Joe Flacco hit wide receiver Lee Evans in the right side of the end zone, but on a play that has been shown countless times this week, Moore reached out and chopped the ball out before Evans’ second foot hit the ground — incomplete pass. On the next play, Moore knocked down another Flacco pass. Facing fourth down, the Ravens turned to veteran kicker Billy Cundiff, who hooked a 32-yard field goal wide left.

The Patriots were headed to Super Bowl XLVI next weekend in Indianapolis, and Moore suddenly was a hero.

Not bad for the guy nobody wanted coming out of high school at Deer Valley High School in Antioch, Calif., where his senior season was his first on a football field. Not bad for the guy went virtually unrecruited coming out of Laney College in Oakland until SMU secondary coach Derrick Odum spotted him. Not bad for a guy who went undrafted out of SMU after a couple of stellar seasons on offense and special teams, in part because of three knee injuries in two years. Not bad for a player who made enough plays in training camp with the Oakland Raiders to earn a spot on the practice squad, only to get cut in late September.

Less than two weeks later, he landed in New England, but that didn’t mean he enjoyed star status right away. Moore bounced back and forth a couple of times between the Patriots’ practice squad and active roster, until injuries in the secondary accelerated his ascent into the starting lineup.

A few weeks ago, almost nobody other than SMU fans and Patriot fans knew who he was. After his back-to-back game-saving plays, his name is known by football fans everywhere.

“Hundreds,” Moore said when asked how many text messages and Facebook messages he got in the hours after Sunday’s victory. “It definitely has been crazy. A lot of them were from back home in California, a lot from SMU, and a lot from crazy Patriots fans I’ve never even met.”

That Flacco threw in Moore’s direction — twice — on such crucial plays was somewhat surprising, considering that on the opposite side of the field, Baltimore receiver Anquan Boldin was being shadowed by a wide receiver, Julian Edelman, who has been masquerading as a defensive back when injuries have depleted the Patriots’ secondary.

“(Edelman) was on him all drive,” Moore said. “They had been working that side of our defense, so I think they kind of tried to lull me to sleep before coming back to me.”

But when the ball came his way, Moore was ready.

“It was just instinct,” Moore said of the play on which he knocked the ball out of Evans’ hands. “I didn’t have time to think ‘what’s my next move?’ We do that drill in practice every day, where we’re trailing a receiver and have to knock the ball out.”

Moore said before this season, the biggest game of his life was the 2009 Sheraton Hawaii Bowl or the 2010 Conference USA championship game. Next week, he plays in the sport’s biggest game at any level.

“I knew if I had an opportunity to get on the field, I was confident in my ability,” Moore said. “I have always believed in myself. It’s all about getting the opportunity.

“They (the Patriots) welcomed me from Day One. They didn’t treat me like I was a rookie. We’re all here for one common goal, and these guys act like everyone in the locker room can contribute or you wouldn’t be there. My JC coach (John Beam) called me and said, ‘you have to look at yourself as one of the best players, or you wouldn’t be there. Don’t look at the other guys like they’re better than you.’ He was right. It took me a few weeks to learn the defense and everything, but these guys always treated me like I belonged. That did a lot for my confidence.”

Sterling Moore said he will not allow himself to look back at his bath to Super Bowl XLVI until after his rookie season is over (photo by PonyFans.com).

Moore acknowledged that he has gotten motivation from past rejections, whether it was the lack of recruiting attention he got, or the fact that he wasn’t chosen in the NFL Draft.

“I would say going undrafted made me show up with a chip on my shoulder in Oakland,” he said. “You want to show the teams that passed you up that, ‘I’m going to come out here and show you what you missed on.’”

In addition to the pride he understandably feels about being in the NFL and playing in its ultimate game, Moore said he is enjoying his family’s anticipation for the Super Bowl.

“My family is really excited,” he said. “I think it’s hectic for them, but they’re getting a whole lot of phone calls from family and friends, looking for tickets. Tickets aren’t free, so I can’t pay for everyone.”

Not lost on Moore is the fact that he is the third Mustang in as many years to reach the NFL’s biggest game. Wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders made it last year with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The year before, punter Thomas Morstead and the New Orleans Saints won the Lombardi Trophy.

“There’s talent at SMU,” Moore said. “I bet there have been some other players over the years who got overlooked because of the team’s record. Coach Jones changed that. When he got there, SMU started winning, and NFL teams started to pay more attention. There is talent at SMU, and more players will be in the league next year.”

In New England, Moore plays for head coach Bill Belichick, who is the NFL’s master of talking to the media without saying anything of substance that might serve as motivation for an opponent. Sure enough, Moore has mastered the art of speaking Belichick-ese, even suggesting that he plans to treat next week’s game as “just another game.”

“I think I can (treat it as just another game),” Moore said. “For me, it’s another chance to show what I can do. Maybe next week, when we’re in Indy, with all the media from around the world … maybe then it will hit me.

“I have never really looked back (at his path to the Super Bowl). Maybe that’s something I’ll do after the season, but not now. We’ve got one more game to play.”