Moody was born to Young Sun (née Chang) as the youngest of three children, raised in the Dallas, Texas, area.

His abilities attracted interest from a number of prominent college football programs, notably Texas, Miami and Southern California.

As a true freshman, Moody was the second leading rusher in the 2006 season, gaining 560 yards on 79 carries in a rotating platoon of running backs.

[2] In the summer before the 2007 season, he was featured as one of three USC running backs on the regional cover of Sports Illustrated's college football preview edition.

[5] As required by NCAA transfer rules, Moody was forced to sit out the 2007 season with the Florida Gators; but was permitted to practice with the scout team.

Welcomed by a team that needed a power running back to relieve quarterback Tim Tebow, Moody had some difficulties adapting to the spread offense used by the Gators.