LOS ANGELES TIMES 1994 : ALL-Valley / Football Team : Lineman of The Year : Cullum Kept Focus After Brother Hurt

It was a bittersweet season for Crespi High’s Kane Cullum.

It began with Cullum, a 6-foot-5, 275-pound senior, starting on both sides of the Crespi line. Just as important, Cullum’s younger brother, K.C., had joined the varsity as a sophomore and had earned a starting job at outside linebacker.

“It was our dream to be able to play together,” Cullum said. “He busted his . . . to make varsity. It meant the whole world to him.”

The dream died Oct. 7, when K.C. limped off the field during a game against St. Bernard.

“He wasn’t walking real straight,” Cullum recalled. “I knew something was wrong. My brother isn’t the kind to come off the field unless he can’t play anymore.”

He couldn’t. K.C. was taken to a hospital, where it was discovered he had four broken vertebrae in his neck.

The injury wasn’t life-threatening, but it turned out to be heart-breaking for both Cullum brothers.

Fearing he would be hurt worse if he continued to play, doctors told K.C. he had to give up football--for good.

“It was real depressing,” Kane Cullum said. “It crushed him and it crushed me. It really hurt, especially the week after. I just wanted to go home and be with my brother. The coaches had to really turn me around.”

Cullum continued to play. His football future was too bright for him not to.

A force in the trenches, Cullum is one of the most-recruited linemen in California. This season, he was voted to the All-Del Rey League first team and was selected a Super Prep All-American.

Several Division I schools, including Washington, Arizona State, Brigham Young, Illinois and Hawaii have expressed interest in him. With a bevy of schools to choose from, he has narrowed his recruiting visits to Colorado, Colorado State and UCLA.

“I liked those teams because I felt their (programs) were really close, like family,” Cullum said. “Family is a big thing with me.

“If it’s not like Crespi, I don’t want to go there.”

Despite a disappointing finish for the Celts, who were eliminated by Long Beach Jordan in the first round of the Southern Section Division I playoffs, the season ended on a positive note for Kane Cullum.

And that’s OK with K.C.

“Right now, I’ve been getting a lot of awards and he’s so happy for me,” Kane Cullum said. “I know he’s really disappointed, but he doesn’t show it.”