Fullerton’s Scott Doesn’t Think Small : After Four Years of Waiting, Titan Running Back Gets the Ball

Before the 1980 season, the football coaches at Lynwood High School put a placard on the gym wall with small squares where each player was supposed to write his goal for the upcoming year.

Senior tailback Burness Scott walked up and, without hesitation, wrote “2,000 yards” under his name. His teammates jeered. Most of his coaches laughed. And he took a lot of ribbing during practice.

By the end of the season, some college coaches were drooling, but nobody was laughing anymore. Scott had his 2,000 yards and Lynwood had the won the Southern Section’s Southern Conference championship.

And no one has ever accused Burness Scott of thinking small since.

Scott was recruited by Oklahoma, Washington, UCLA and USC--to name a few--but he had already decided he was going to be a Bruin by the time he was a sophomore at Lynwood. He also had his college career mapped out in his mind. He was going to bring fame to himself and UCLA, setting records and wowing the fans in the Coliseum the way the Bruin backs he idolized as a kid growing up a few miles away did.

This dream, too, seemed as if it was destined to become reality. As a freshman in a talent-laden backfield, Scott carried the ball 29 times, gained 117 yards and scored 3 touchdowns. His efforts didn’t go unnoticed. He was awarded with the team’s Rookie of the Year trophy at season’s end.

The trophy was nice, but this still wasn’t the way Scott had envisioned it. Sure, Kevin Nelson was a good back, but Scott figured he deserved to get the ball a little more often.

“It seemed like I could never relax there, that I always had to stay on my toes, but no one else did,” Scott said. “They knew I could do the job and even when I got a chance and started producing, it still didn’t please them.”

Nelson was injured before the Oregon game in 1981 and Scott was upset when Danny Andrews got to start ahead of him. Scott got to play for three minutes in the fourth quarter and he gained 52 yards in five carries, including a 12-yard touchdown.

The 52 yards were more than Andrews gained in the whole game, a fact Scott didn’t fail to point out to the Bruin coaching staff.

“I asked why I wasn’t playing more and they told me I was a freshman and would have to wait,” Scott said. “I accepted my role to help the team. I knew Kevin would be playing if he was healthy, but I thought I deserved to be a solid No. 2.”

His sophomore year left Scott even more disenchanted. He began the season in a cast after fracturing his hip in practice, but was back in uniform for the Bruins’ second game. He scored three touchdowns against Washington when Nelson was hurt again, but he spent most of the rest of the season watching from the sidelines. He finished the year with 96 yards on 27 carries.

Scott’s problems in the classroom were mounting, too. He received one “D” and one “F” and was unable to keep his grade-point average up to the 2.0 required by the NCAA.

“I tried to take too many hard classes too fast,” Scott said, “and my mind was on my problems with my athletic career. I was taking a lot of things too fast at that point in my life.”

About that time, Gene Murphy, Cal State Fullerton coach, got “one of those calls you love to get” from Terry Donahue, UCLA coach.

“He called and said Burness was having troubles academically with the UC system,” Murphy said. “He also said he was one of the best freshman running backs he’d ever seen.”

Scott was the kind of high school prospect that the Titans don’t usually waste much time trying to recruit. But Murphy and Co. like to make contact, keep in touch and hope for a fortunate twist of fate.

“We didn’t go after him too hard, but we expressed interest and were nice to him,” Murphy said. “Heck, we’re not too proud to take somebody on the rebound.”

Scott decided to give Fullerton a try. He changed his major from history to math, sat out the ’83 season and got his grades up. Last year, he split time at tailback with senior Roy Lewis and gained 476 yards on 114 carries. He also caught 10 passes for 104 yards. And he scored four touchdowns in the Titans’ best season ever.

“I came to Fullerton because I thought it would be the best place to expose myself as a pro prospect in a hurry,” Scott said. “And things have worked out pretty well so far.”

Murphy’s not complaining, especially after Scott ripped off 133 yards in 18 carries in Fullerton’s season-opening 31-30 loss at Montana. Scott may be the fastest back in Fullerton history. He’s certainly the first bona fide breakaway threat the Titans have had in the last five years.

Scott is only 5-feet 9-inches and 180 but he doesn’t always run around people. He’s been known to run over linebackers who were a lot bigger. He’s also a vicious blocker.

After four years of waiting, Scott has the chance he’s been waiting for. He’s the No. 1 tailback and figures to be handed the ball almost enough times to satisfy even him.

“I’m happy now,” he said. “I accept where I am and my role now. I didn’t let the discouragement at UCLA stop me and that says something. I didn’t quit. I’m here and I’m happy to just be one of the players.”

As long as he’s the one with the ball.