Fullwood a New Bo in Town : This 3-Year Reserve Followed a Legend in Jackson and May Become One, Too

Brent Fullwood, Auburn’s All-American tailback, doesn’t reveal much about himself.

He was introverted while playing behind Heisman Trophy winner Bo Jackson for three years and although he has opened up a bit to reporters recently, he still is one who doesn’t readily share his thoughts.

But his actions? That’s a different story. What he does on a football field is a source of constant amazement, to his teammates and onlookers alike. There is a very special quality about Fullwood, even though he didn’t become prominent until last fall.

So special, in fact, that some people even say that he’s a better running back than Jackson.

After Fullwood had gained 179 yards and scored 3 touchdowns against Mississippi State, one on an 88-yard run, Bulldog Coach Rockey Felker said: “Play after play, he’s better than Bo.”

Auburn quarterback Jeff Burger, who used to hand the ball off to Jackson and does the same to Fullwood, still marvels over a move that Fullwood made against Florida.

“There were six Florida guys within about a yard of him when Brent suddenly made a cut on the sideline and went right by them,” Burger said. “I still can’t believe it.”

Tom Greer, Fullwood’s high school coach in nearby St. Cloud, Fla., recalls a time when Eustis, a rival team, lined up a 10-man front just to stop him.

“We threw a little dump pass to him four yards behind the line of scrimmage and the whole Eustis team was right on top of him when he turned on the steam,” Greer said. “He just blew right by them. You just couldn’t believe his athletic ability.”

USC tailback Aaron Emanuel, who has watched films of Fullwood, compares his running style to Walter Payton’s.

“He has that quick first step and he’s fast and strong,” Emanuel said.

Outside linebacker Marcus Cotton will be tracking Fullwood for USC when the Trojans play the Tigers in the Florida Citrus Bowl New Year’s Day. He is already impressed by Fullwood.

“He’s really got some speed,” Cotton said. “He seems bigger and faster than (UCLA’s) Gaston Green. He’s impressive, and I’m not easily impressed.”

Green ripped through USC for 224 yards and 4 touchdowns Nov. 22, so the Trojans are justifiably concerned about Fullwood.

At 5 feet 11 inches and 209 pounds, Fullwood is a smaller version of Herschel Walker with, apparently, more moves and, perhaps, comparable speed.

His signature move is a 360-degree spin just as he is about to be hit.

“I guess I learned that playing flag football as a kid,” Fullwood said. “You had those flags hanging from your belt and you’d spin around so nobody could grab them.”

Tim Jessie, who backs up Fullwood at tailback, says that Fullwood doesn’t have the blazing speed and power of Jackson, but he’s astounded by the spin move.

“He has perfected that move and it’s so quick,” Jessie said. “Someone can have him in a tackle and he can spin out of it. It’s real tough because you usually lose your balance. The rest of us have had to practice that move. But it’s natural for Brent.”

One wonders what Fullwood could accomplish if Auburn’s Coach Pat Dye really turned him loose. He is averaging only 15 carries a game. Yet, he gains an average of 8.3 yards every time he touches the ball. In that category, he’s the best in the country.

There are more tales of his prowess, but some people here seem more interested in what Fullwood does, or doesn’t do, off the field. Such as attend class.

He struggled to become academically eligible during the summer, then dropped his classes, taking incompletes, sometime in October. Yet, he didn’t miss a game or a practice.

He is apparently not ineligible, by either NCAA or Auburn rules, because his eligibility was established earlier.

Fullwood said he was sick with the flu in October and that his father and stepmother had been involved in an automobile accident.

“It really tore me up,” he said. “She’s wearing a neck brace and may be disabled. It was almost like seeing someone in my family die to see her like that.”

“I just didn’t quit school. If anyone else’s parents were in a wreck and got hurt, they’d go home. That took me two weeks to handle that. Then, I had been sick for two weeks. You can’t go to school when you’re sick.”

But his personal problems didn’t prevent him from playing football.

Dye said he was unaware that Fullwood had dropped his classes, adding, “When players get to be seniors, 99% of them will go to class and do what they’re supposed to do to get a degree. I don’t think Brent is different than any other college athlete that goes to school four years and doesn’t get a degree. I know he went to class prior to this year, or else he wouldn’t have had a chance to make it this far.”

In an interview session Monday, Fullwood was terse, but accommodating. A sampling:

Question: “How would you describe your running style?

Answer: “I just run the ball and just try to do my best.”

Q: Did it bother you that you had to play behind Jackson for three years before getting a chance to start?

A: My mom said to be patient. Anything worth having is worth waiting for.

Q: Did you learn anything playing behind Jackson?

A: You can’t learn anything from other backs. They have their own ways and you have your own ways.

Fullwood also said that Mercury Morris, the former Miami Dolphin running back, had been his boyhood idol and that the San Francisco 49ers and Denver Broncos are his favorite NFL teams because they emphasize the running game.

When asked his best time for the football 40-yard dash, Fullwood said, without hesitation, “4.18 seconds--but that was in high school.”

If so, Fullwood is not only the fastest football player of all time, but the fastest human ever.

USC has its tailback legacy and so does Auburn. Fullwood follows such famous Auburn running backs as Jackson, Joe Cribbs, James Brooks, William Andrews and Lionel James.

But Fullwood came perilously close to not fulfilling his potential. Bud Casey, who coaches the Auburn running backs, said that Fullwood was on the verge of quitting several times as a freshman because he was homesick.

But he stuck with it and even got a taste of success as a sophomore in 1984, when Jackson suffered a shoulder separation in the second game. Fullwood emerged as Auburn’s leading rusher, gaining 628 yards.

But it was back to second-string status in 1985 when Jackson ran for 1,786 yards and won the Heisman Trophy. Even so, Fullwood made the most of his limited opportunities, gaining 684 yards with a 7.4 average.

It was also that year that he married Lanett, his high school girlfriend, and became somewhat isolated from his teammates when he moved out of the athletic dormitory and into an off-campus apartment with Lanett and her 11-year-old brother.

Before last season started, however, Fullwood moved Lanett and their newborn daughter, Brandy, back to Florida, then returned to the athletic dorm, saying that he wanted to get closer to his teammates.

He had a reputation of being moody and a loner, and he wanted to change his image.

“Brent used to be like John McEnroe,” Jessie told the Birmingham, Ala., Post-Herald. “It was either Brent’s way or no way. Now he takes orders. I know it must have been tough for him to change. But I have a lot of respect for him.”

So has every team that has had to play against him.