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Now those same shelves are stocked with his red No. 24 University of Georgia jersey and will soon feature the jersey of whichever NFL franchise picks Moreno in Saturday's NFL Draft.

On Thursday, Moreno spoke to more than a hundred fans, many of them children and teenagers from Middletown South, at the same Modell's where he once worked. His Georgia jersey -- priced at $60 -- filled one wall opposite those of NFL stars Tony Romo, Eli Manning and Justin Tuck.

"To see it is kind of overwhelming, but it's special," said the 5-foot-11, 207-pound native of Belford, N.J.

A gregarious, outgoing personality, Moreno sat behind a desk and took questions from the people who had once watched with awe as he ran over and past defenders in the Shore Conference.

He said he likes to bowl and issued a formal challenge to point guard Chris Paul of the New Orleans Hornets to meet him at the alleys.

"I hear he's good, but I'll challenge him," Moreno said.

He told a story about how he once hurriedly ran out of the house before a high school game wearing something unique on his feet.

"I was rushing out of the house and I needed pair of slippers so I grabbed my Grandma's slippers," he said.

After he had a big night on the gridiron, those slippers became part of his daily routine before games.

When it came time to talk about the draft itself, one youngster asked: "What team to you want to go to?"

"It would be cool to come back home to the Jets or Giants," Moreno said. "That would be really cool. But I don't care."

Both the Jets and Philadelphia Eagles have shown interest in Moreno, who rushed for 2,736 yards and 30 touchdowns in his last two years at Georgia. He is the only Georgia running back other than Herschel Walker to gain 1,000 yards each of his first two seasons.

Although quarterback Matthew Stafford, Moreno's Georgia teammate, is expected to be the No. 1 overall by the Detroit Lions, many mock drafts have Moreno going at No. 21 to the Eagles.

Still, Todd McShay of Scouts Inc., said Moreno was not getting enough love from draft prognosticators.

"Knowshon Moreno is getting no love and he's the most complete back in this year's class," McShay said on ESPN. "He comes from the SEC. He has the production, he runs hard, he's gotten bigger and stronger in the offseason.

"I guess a little part of it is the fact that he didn't run a great 40 time and [Ohio State's] Chris 'Beanie' Wells is more physically gifted. But Knowshon Moreno could be available at 21 to the Eagles or slip even further. I think he's the 12th-best player in this year's draft."

In his mock draft on SI.com, Peter King has Moreno going at No. 16 to the San Diego Chargers.

"Anything can happen on draft day," Moreno said. "It's like the lottery."

In King's mock draft, six of the 32 first-round picks come from New Jersey: defensive tackle B.J. Raji of Boston College (No. 6, Cincinnati); offensive tackle Eugene Monroe of Virginia (No.8, Jacksonville); cornerback Malcolm Jenkins of Ohio State (No. 14, New Orleans); linebacker Brian Cushing of USC (No. 15, Houston); Moreno; and running back Donald Brown of UConn (No. 31, Arizona).

A seventh Jersey player, Rutgers wideout Kenny Britt, could go late in the first round or early in the second.

"It's good to have a New Jersey crew out there in the draft," Moreno said. "Coaches need to start recruiting up here in New Jersey a little more."

Moreno and Brown played pee wee football for several years on the Atlantic Highlands Tigers, with Moreno at quarterback and Brown at running back.

"We had a great backfield," Moreno said.

Both players actually went on a visit to the Jets together, and now both will likely get drafted in the first round on Saturday.

Because the draft doesn't begin until 4 p.m. on Saturday, Moreno said he'll have to entertain himself for most of the day to avoid becoming nervous.

"Might go fishing early in the morning," Moreno said. "I hear it's supposed to be a nice day. Maybe golf or something -- no, I can't do golf. I might get aggravated. That game, you've got to stay calm.

Will staying calm involve wearing those famous slippers on draft day?

No, said his grandmother, Mildred McQueen.

"We retired them when he went to Georgia," she said with a smile.