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Steve Fuller (American football)

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This article is about the American football player. For the philosopher-sociologist, see Steve Fuller (sociologist).

Steve Fuller
refer to caption
Fuller at Clemson in 1975
No. 4
Position:Quarterback
Personal information
Born: (1957-01-05) January 5, 1957 (age 67)
Enid, Oklahoma, U.S.
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:198 lb (90 kg)
Career information
High school:Spartanburg
(Spartanburg, South Carolina)
College:Clemson (1975–1978)
NFL draft:1979 / round: 1 / pick: 23
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Passing attempts:1,066
Passing completions:605
Completion percentage:56.8%
TD–INT:28–41
Passing yards:7,156
Passer rating:70.1
Rushing yards:908
Rushing touchdowns:11
Stats at Pro Football Reference

Stephen Ray Fuller (born January 5, 1957) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 10 seasons. He played college football for the Clemson Tigers, where he was twice named ACC Player of the Year, and was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs in the first round of the 1979 NFL draft. Fuller played his first four seasons with the Chiefs and was a member of the Los Angeles Rams during his fifth season. He joined the Chicago Bears in 1984, where he spent four seasons as a backup and was a member of the team that won the franchise's first Super Bowl title in Super Bowl XX. In his final season, Fuller was a member of the San Diego Chargers.

Early life

Fuller was born in Enid, Oklahoma and graduated from Spartanburg High School in Spartanburg, South Carolina.[1]

College career

Fuller played college football at Clemson University in Clemson, South Carolina from 1975 to 1978.[2] He was a member of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity,[3] Fuller was a football and academic All-America at Clemson University.

In 1975, Fuller was 22-of-46 for 354 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions. In addition, he had 47 carries for 148 yards as Clemson finished with a 2–9 record.

In 1976, Fuller was 58-of-116 for 835 yards with five touchdowns and six interceptions. In addition, he had 157 carries for 503 yards with six touchdowns as Clemson finished with a 3–6–2 record.

In 1977, Fuller was 106-of-205 for 1,655 yards with eight touchdowns and eight interceptions. In addition, he had 178 carries for 437 yards with six touchdowns as Clemson finished with an 8–3–1 record.

In 1978, Fuller was 101-of-187 for 1,515 yards with seven touchdowns and four interceptions. In addition, he had 153 carries for 649 yards and ten touchdowns as Clemson finished with an 11–1 record.

College statistics

Legend
Led the ACC
Bold Career high
Season Team GP Passing Rushing
Cmp Att Pct Yds TD Int Rtg Att Yds Avg TD
1975 Clemson 11 22 46 47.8 354 2 3 113.8 47 148 3.1 0
1976 Clemson 11 58 116 50.0 835 5 6 114.3 157 503 3.2 6
1977 Clemson 11 96 182 52.7 1,497 8 4 131.9 165 403 2.4 6
1978 Clemson 12 101 187 54.0 1,515 7 4 130.1 153 649 4.2 10
Career[4] 45 277 531 52.2 4,201 22 17 125.9 522 1,703 3.3 22

* Includes bowl games.

Professional career

Fuller was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs in the first round with the 23rd overall pick in the 1979 NFL draft.[2] He played in the National Football League for seven years, most notably with the Chicago Bears as their backup quarterback from 1984 to 1986, including the Super Bowl XX championship season in 1985.[2] Fuller was named by Sports Illustrated as one of the top fifteen backup quarterbacks of all time, based on his 1985 season with the Chicago Bears.[5]

After not throwing a single pass during the entire 1983 NFL season, Fuller came in for the Chicago Bears in Week 10 of the 1984 NFL season against the Los Angeles Raiders after an injury to starting quarterback Jim McMahon halfway through the game. McMahon missed the rest of the 1984 season and Fuller became the Bears starter, all the way to the 1984 NFC Championship game against the eventual Super Bowl champion San Francisco 49ers.

Fuller was awarded a gold record and a platinum video award for the 1985 "Super Bowl Shuffle", for which he was the sixth of the ten solo singers.[6] In 2010, during Super Bowl XLIV, Fuller joined other members of the 1985 Chicago Bears in recreating the Super Bowl Shuffle in a Boost Mobile commercial.[7]

NFL career statistics

Legend
Won the Super Bowl
Led the league
Bold Career high

Regular season

Year Team Games Passing Rushing Sacks
GP GS Record Cmp Att Pct Yds Y/A Lng TD Int Rtg Att Yds Avg Lng TD Sck Yds
1979 KAN 16 12 6-6 146 270 54.1 1,484 5.5 40 6 14 55.8 50 264 5.3 49 1 37 244
1980 KAN 14 13 6-7 193 320 60.3 2,250 7.0 77 10 12 76.4 60 274 4.6 38 4 49 348
1981 KAN 13 3 1-2 77 134 57.5 934 7.0 53 3 4 74.0 19 118 6.2 27 0 17 117
1982 KAN 9 3 0-3 49 93 52.7 665 7.2 51 3 2 77.6 10 56 5.6 12 0 17 143
1984 CHI 6 4 2-2 53 78 67.9 595 7.6 31 3 0 103.3 15 89 5.9 26 1 7 41
1985 CHI 16 5 4-1 53 107 49.5 777 7.3 69 1 5 57.3 24 77 3.2 13 5 17 102
1986 CHI 16 2 0-2 34 64 53.1 451 7.0 50 2 4 60.1 8 30 3.8 10 0 8 53
Career 90 42 19-23 605 1,066 56.8 7,156 6.7 77 28 41 70.1 186 908 4.9 49 11 152 1,048

Playoffs

Year Team Games Passing Rushing Sacks
GP GS Record Cmp Att Pct Yds Y/A Lng TD Int Rtg Att Yds Avg Lng TD Sck Yds
1984 CHI 2 2 1-1 22 37 59.5 298 8.1 75 2 1 91.9 8 44 5.5 23 0 13 84
1985 CHI 3 0 0-0 0 4 0.0 0 0.0 0 0 0 39.6 1 1 1.0 1 0 1 11
1986 CHI 1 0 0-0 0 0 0.0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0
Career 6 2 1-1 22 41 53.7 298 7.3 75 2 1 83.2 9 45 5.0 23 0 14 95

Personal life

Fuller and his wife, Anna, have two children. The couple live in South Carolina where Fuller was a high school football coach at Hilton Head Prep School. Fuller currently works as offensive coordinator for the Hilton Head Prep School Varsity football team.[8]

References

  1. ^ "Steve Fuller". databaseFootball.com. Archived from the original on October 20, 2012. Retrieved November 10, 2012.
  2. ^ a b c "Steve Fuller Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft, College". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
  3. ^ "SC Nu Athletics". Sigma Alpha Epsilon. Archived from the original on July 31, 2009. Retrieved April 11, 2010.
  4. ^ "Steve Fuller college statistics". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
  5. ^ "Backup plan saved Bears". ESPN Chicago. Retrieved November 10, 2012.
  6. ^ Thorman, Joel (May 25, 2009). "The Greatest Kansas City Chiefs, By The Numbers: #4". Arrowhead Pride. Retrieved November 10, 2012.
  7. ^ Greenberg, Jon (January 15, 2010). "Chicago Bears' "Super Bowl Shuffle" an enduring, endearing sports moment - ESPN Chicago". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 11, 2023.
  8. ^ "Hilton Head Island High School Boys Varsity Football Fall 2016 Coaches". www.hiltonheadhighsports.org. Retrieved February 20, 2017.[permanent dead link‍]
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