A Football Life Marshall Faulk

well my first indication was our first meeting with the offense and he's sitting right in front of me in the front row right there right and I reach over to touch him just like that he's got pens and papers he's got no books he's got all this stuff to draw with different colored pens and he is writing everything I say down and this is unbelievable he said hey coach would you stop for just a second I said sure marshal he turn on system if y'all writing all this down does everybody have a pen and a piece of paper I just couldn't imagine that you could sit here and not take notes you were going to forget something from that moment on everybody had a pen and a notebook out ready to take notes after that man you know this could be pretty good this might work out okay believe me like crazy [Music] Johanns who is the best football player in his room really I hope that when I leave you believe you're the best football player in this room in the country the reason why I'm standing before you is because of one thing listen I mean it was Thurman Thomas Barry Sanders Emmitt Smith it did not matter in my head I felt that I was the best player period [Music] [Applause] 25 20 15 we go to 68 yard [Music] you put pads on this guy and he's like no other player I've ever seen you can't find a guy as versatile as a Marshall phone I don't know if there's ever been one in the National Football League I mean he exuded confidence like I'm good you know I mean and he was he's gonna beat anybody one-on-one on a routine basis you know just gonna do it what he had you can't coach the instincts put this in speed and the vision he could see things come that many people can't see him coming you're born [Music] actually there's one against the Saints in 99 that might be the best one of all time he pops out of this thing and I'll say he takes off for about a 25 yard game [Applause] while remember ye gain we're planning us the Cleveland Browns [Music] I'm sitting myself I just see what I just saw and that's when everybody like started calling him Superman [Applause] rapid fall Cup yeah just reach in and grab and let's go get your legs ya mean he's big he's loose ooh if you get you out of space he's gonna miss it [Applause] it's hard to catch desire has always been a part of Marshall fall if you're from New Orleans that you know anything about New Orleans they tell you stay out the night war that's why I'm from like there's no reason for you to be in the Ninth Ward they people just don't make it you just don't go from the hood to the Hall of Fame the average income per family in this neighborhood is around $7,000 a year it's one of the worst ghettos in America and certainly the toughest in New Orleans the desire housing project was tough challenging as friends you will fight justice just to make sure that you're ok with fighting in case as a group we got into a fight with some other people he wanted to fit into the the society of the area that he was in and it wasn't the best society it's kind of rough like I look around look around at the rest of them and see if you want to be there oh you want to be better than that my high school coach Wayne Reis he called me into his office and my love for basketball was just it was awesome and he looked at me said um you're about five nine right now he said I want you to go home and let me know how many five nine shooting guards you see Roman and MBA he said listen if you just dedicate some time to football you'll have a chance to go to college and I was like really and and that's when things changed for me [Applause] the big deal when you played football in the New Orleans area was the Rollins times-picayune high school football preview section and Marshall was on the cover his senior year from Carver High School and you knew they were putting on kind of the top players it was really fun to watch Marshall then of course I followed him tonight I look at the best high school players continues with a look at the district's most valuable player Marshall Faulk of Carver my coach taught me the game of football taught me everything about it the minute football became I loved it then became his bargaining to happen to be at practice before everybody else the extra running I had to do if I was late I had to clean the gym clean the boiler room whatever job they had for the kids at school I tried to make sure my athletes got those job because I lose some situations they was in so I had the the embarrassing role of being a janitor and it was humbling you know to have kids that you're going to school with see you clean and sweep up and mop up and it only made me work harder because I knew like this was not going to be my job this was not going to be me I'm not knocking any janitor out there but that was not going to be my life coming up the Louisiana native finds himself nearly 2,000 miles from home I went far enough away that going home was not an option I cannot fail [Music] Marshall Faulk was a highly sought after college recruit he was hoping to attend the University of Miami Hurricane Jacket in high school and I was like man is this would be awesome if I got a chance to play for the Miami Hurricane and then coach Erickson kind of looked me in eyes we don't want you to play running back we want you to play cornerback that I wasn't big enough that that he didn't think I could play running back for the University of Miami Faulk received the same message on three other recruiting trips they wanted him only as a defensive back just five school visits were allowed we had no recruiting budget at San Diego State in those days so that was a long trip for us our wide receiver coach at that time was a young coach named Curtis Johnson born and raised in New Orleans I was at the age where I had friends down here who was coaching you know they would bring these legends up and one of the legends was a legend of Marshall Funk I felt if we could get him on a trip we would have a shot Johnson convinced Faulk to use his fifth school trip to fly to San Diego but just days before he was scheduled to go fox father became gravely ill I said mush I'm sorry you know we could try to rearrange do whatever we can to rearrange it he said no this is important to me he said I need to really go on this trip just to see I think I was at San Diego State I remember getting home finding out that my father passed away I wouldn't leave the house my coach coach Reese had to come get me and make me go to the funeral I'm and I just I wasn't ready to say goodbye it did just you know it it wasn't time but it was time to make his college choice the first school that come up in here and offered me a chance to play running back that's where I'm going we made no guarantees to him other than the fact that if he was in our top two coming out of fall camp he'd stay on office martial art I'm 28 running it I show up and it's a 1 back system and I'm number seven he quickly rose up to number two I may be passed up one or two guys just learning a playbook faster than a v8 smartest football player at a what I call perimeter position I've ever been around I mean it's not even close in the second game starter TC right left with an injury Marshall Faulk is in the backfield freshman from Louisiana [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] his final numbers 37 carries three hundred and eighty-six yards and seven touchdowns you can put together a fight like that you know once I got in there you know TC went down and came in stepped in and everything just seemed so good guys it just block [ __ ] like hell they work their butts off for me my life changed right there and I gained my football story just took off and so did the profile of San Diego State football I will find myself up late at night staying up there just to watch their games eleven twelve o'clock and I know and I had school the next morning but it didn't matter I wanted to see his kid and all black just terrorize a college football we went from less than 10,000 season ticket holders to 36 pounds [Music] March the funk send these let's take freshman running back they say that this fellow is a triple threat and football he can run around you over you are through you fox freshman year ended with over 1400 rushing yards 23 touchdowns and a trip to Disneyland his sophomore year he had a new running backs coach right throughout many of those guys that on any one given play are capable of just going 80 yards past the defense and that would happen every week [Music] [Applause] [Music] in the Heisman race fog was fast becoming the runaway favorite if you asked anybody at the midway point of the season it was Marshall Faulk and then there really was a gap an injury forced Faulk to miss the season finale against Heisman hopeful Gino Torretta and the school Falk most wanted to attend Miami I was very confident that there is no way Gino Torretta nor garrison Hearst had anything close to the year that I had that this should even be in a conversation it is my honor to announce the winner from the Hurricanes Gino Torretta I shook his hand congratulating him and I left it was the first time that I was pissed off about something and football Fox numbers were even better his junior year but San Diego State ended up just six and six and in the Heisman Faulk finished fourth I made myself into the draft when we back at San Diego State to play my senior season coming up two kids from New Orleans team up in indeed he was the only reason we ran 80 game that year I can assure you [Applause] [Music] Marshall Faulk attended the 1994 Scouting Combine in Indianapolis it was the worst blizzard ever it was too cold as I had ever been didn't really own a coat I lead the combine with one thought in mind I'm never coming back here again on draft day Indianapolis had the second pick I was shocked and my workout it was 29 teams - two coats they didn't come to my workout my first game regardless of how confident you are you have doubt I'm playing a game with grown men and the question for myself was can you play this game on this level [Applause] [Music] [Music] in his first game ball cram for 143 yards and three touchdowns he finished the season with nearly 1300 rushing yards and was named Rookie of the Year he was invited to the Pro Bowl but driving to the game with fellow running back Natron means he got into a one car accident we're trying to wait for the cops but we you know we got to get to the game and we wait and we wait and we wait and we wait and finally Nate trans like man we have to go so we flagged some people down hitchhike to the game hop in the back of a truck we hurry up we go change we run out to warm up late I had to let coach Cowher know what happened the cops found out that that car was mine they want to take me they want they're talking to me like I fled the scene of an accident hey coach Cowher is like I need him to play a game yeah I mean why is a pretty relaxed place so it you know I coached enough pro balls I wasn't too worried about it with just minutes remaining Falk had 131 yards rushing his teammate Chris Warren had even more we're getting rid of the punt I said Chris come over here has some good news and bad news good news is you just set a record for the most yards rushed for in a Pro Bowl game just that's awesome what's the bad news I go I'm running a fake punt with Marshall and he's about ready to break your record [Applause] in 1998 Falk joined forces with the next great phenom rookie and first overall pick Peyton Manning my head was spinning I had a lot on my plate and you know trying to learn this NFL style of football and Marshall will be right next to me and he'd be reading the defense like a quarterback would and he would be helping me out hey Peyton this linebackers blitzing hey it's gonna be zone he could see things Marshall was a real source of comfort for me I was looking for him a lot and week ten the Colts played the first place Jets with two minutes left they trailed by six and faced fourth and 15 not the most ideal down in distance if you're trying to win this football game so I just dumped a little three or four yard pass down to Marshall and it's basically him verse 11 I can remember like just watching their jets sideline Parcells and these guys just the look of disgust on their faces how could you let that running back outrun all of y'all and get the first down one of our three wins that year but it felt like we just won the Super Bowl Indianapolis finished in last place but Falk enjoyed his best season in his five years as a coal through 14 games he was the NFL's fifth leading rusher we had talked if he's in the top five and Russian will renegotiate his contract we got two games left well it was it was the night before the game it was a team meeting and I'm always been a stickler for being on time okay Marshall at times would just cut it close to be in there he'd give me there on time but it wasn't like he was there ten minutes early or five minutes early the team meeting starts at 8:30 I've walked into every meeting about 8:20 7 to 8 28 at 8:25 while I'm sitting outside gym more stops to special teams meeting and starts the team meeting why my watch he's late I said Marshall you're late I'm not late I'm not you know it's kind of like that if I recall it I said you're late he goes on one of his rants about being late and that's why we're not playing well and you know this is why you can't win games I was like coach I'm not late shut up you talk too much yada yada yadi keeps going off and I'm like where is this coming from I'm not gonna treat him any different because he's Marshall Faulk and maybe some other coach would have said oh it's okay go on in there you're only 15 seconds late not me I don't care who it was they relate they're late and then you're not starting Faulk was benched for the first quarter in the 4th he lost the ball and the Colts blew a 13-point lead Falk finished with the season low 19 rushing yards and ended the season outside the top five by 13 the Colts refused to renegotiate his contract I think the relationship became somewhat torn to the point where it was unrepairable and I told him I said look I'm gonna get you out of here I thought he would be excited and he was very disappointed and he said you don't understand he said I think they're building something very special here I think Peyton's gonna be good when I told him I said look I'll try to get you to a better team I wanted to get him on grass somewhere when it's warm West Coast and I was zero out of 4 Bach was traded to a team in middle America with cold-weather played on turf and had not had a winning season in a decade [Music] in 1998 Marshall Faulk played alongside Peyton Manning Faulk had his finest season but the Colts finished three and thirteen I felt like I you know I paid my dues dear and I deserve a new contract and they felt like I did you know you never want to leave but I finished my career in Indianapolis but now I'm here and I I hope to finish here the deal that sent Faulk to st. Louis was made possible by another Hall of Fame running back in 1987 Eric Dickerson was traded from the Rams to the Colts 12 years later he still had connections with both I was in Netanya Jim Irsay and he was talking about Marshall you know marks a great player but you know he just not he not big enough to get inside like we like you know like you Eric you a big back and I had a feeling he was thinking about training he didn't say that but I just had a feeling that he might but think about trading him so I talked to John Shaw John is always a why guy well why why should we do this I said John I said first of all you have known no name recognition for the ramps I said he would give you name recognition he's a pro ball player he's a well-known player in NFL I said I think he would really help the team he said well they're talking about training myself to his agent I talked to his agent his agent said yes we are the owners meetings in March and John Shaw came to me our president said dick you know the words out that Marshall Faulk is available for a trade jhamora was the head coach of the cold sea of course we work together work and had remained friends so I started talking with Jim about it if I knew we were gonna have Marshall and Dick Vermeil a friend of mine called me and said what about Marshall Faulk I would I would have endorsed him I would have said hey this guy something he's a special player and he's not a problem as far as I'm concerned I met my desk and dick comes down and says well what do you think what would you think it would get Marshall Faulk and that's not very funny today yeah that's a very fight because I know how good he was you know every knew who Marshall Faulk wasn't yeah here there's a rams rims don't do stuff like that you know so this would have been a dream come true by didn't put any credence to I just figured how are we gonna get in from Indy and John asked me said Eric he said what do you think we should get for it I said I think a two and a player would be I thought I think it'd be a steal the Colts packaged Faulk for a second and a fifth round pick the player they would call Superman had landed in st. Louis but he hardly looked the part there's some guys in the NFL that are physical specimens there you go that guy's gonna be a superstar Marshall wasn't one of those guys that you looked at outside of pads and said man I bet that guy's one of the best athletes has ever played and I mean I remember I would bring people into the locker room then Marshall be over there sitting in his locker and they'd look at me and I like who's that in Marshalls locker like it's Marshall Faulk they're like what no that's not Marc I'm like trust me it's it's Marshall Faulk Faulk signed the richest contract in franchise history Superman had come to save the day instead the Rams were dealt one of the worst setbacks imaginable Trent Green comes in here the real hope for this offense we've been talking about him all game at all preseason long I have the outside guy and Rodney came around the edge and instead of me really being forceful with him I gave him the oh it's pre-season kind of pushed to the ground [Music] now we've got red rain down we've got tread grain down in the middle of the field I'm just looking at Trent green and I'm thinking to myself wow that was on me I never got to someone hurt before someone ever been hurt on my watch as teammates do nice tight you fall don't worry about it and I don't blame it on Rodney I don't blame it on anything or anyone other than myself but it's preseason or not if I would have done my job that doesn't happen diet problems even looking trend the high everything is right now on me I'm thinking to myself you get your way out of Indianapolis you leave a Peyton Manning you get a Trent green heard like what would it would and and now who's your quarterback Kurt Warner checks in certainly not where Trent Green is and the kind of experience that green brought to this offense coming up Faulk at the heart of one of the unlikeliest championship runs in NFL history [Music] when I first got to a Indianapolis the only thing I wanted to do was run the football I wanted to run the football running backs Ted and then after what I went through to get to st. Louis having what happened with Trent I was willing to do whatever they needed me to do wherever they needed me to line up sharing the knowledge that I had about what we could do what I could do the things that I saw whatever it was I was going to help the team win everything that you might have heard in Indy saw none of that in st. Louis and he emerged both as a leader on the field but also in the locker room very very quickly in 1999 the Rams also had a new offensive coordinator if we talk about Mike Martz you think of the crazy offensive scientist in his lab just creating anything and everything and then you think about the perfect ingredient you know the ingredients that makes everything more powerful and that's Marshall fall coach marts implemented a revolutionary offense that featured Marshall Faulk in multiple formations the matchups that you could get within were just incredible and then they would put in an extra DB and that guy was supposed to cover him one-on-one that's not gonna or blitzes if we released him they get a count for him after a while people they just quit Blitzen he would defeat the Blitz to his level our Marshalls basic routes were act like he's going into this flat he comes over to cross the middle on a delay route still to this day and call it the fog around but nobody ran in like Marshall did where do we want where are we gonna put him and how are you going to defend him in all those different spots he wasn't faster than a speeding bullet more more powerful than a locomotive but his physical gifts transformed the Rams from bad to good his intelligence made them super he knew how to get himself ready he knew how to prepare he was mentally gonna be better than everybody played against his smarter backs I've ever been around my life I've been around some good ones I know a few that are lawyers right now that played in the league yeah and they're never very smart this guy's smart now one thing that he taught me was first thing in back does when they line up is they look at the safeties for run support because if he does break out he wants to know who's got to run and who he has to be by himself he would manipulate the blind backers or safeties with his eyes he will look a certain way and stare that way to get them to kind of cheat over and then he'll go the opposite way [Music] one play that always stands out for all of us and we remember it's on a couple of our highlight videos it was in Tennessee we don't have any timeouts we're trying to get a field goal and put it into overtime and I hit out as I came on the throw and he gets hit and he's slow getting up we're all kind of like get up get up you know just kind of watching him like come on we're gonna run out of time but Marshall can be answerable on what's going on knowing the surroundings at the sense of mind a run pick us up get him help him get lined up get back to his position and we clocked it [Music] then we move into the protections he said I can block this guy if that guy comes off I can get him to don't worry about when they bring this guy they don't bring these guys over here through my film study through your film study so he started that whole trend with backs about what you could do with them in the protection so there's all those things about playing that position that I thought I kind of knew that I really didn't know we call it scan now everybody to call his scan around a National Football League it stems from the Marshall Faulk going back getting that guy or he wrapping around blocking it at regard coming those are the little things that most people don't see that we were always in awe of when it came to Marshall is that he always knew the right thing to do in 1999 with Falk in the backfield a previously unknown quarterback became League MVP [Applause] Falk caught 87 passes for more than a thousand yards [Applause] [Music] and ran for nearly 1,400 his 2429 yards from scrimmage were the most in one season in NFL history let's show about his game is cool [Applause] the Rams went from 4 and 12 and no winning seasons in a decade to the greatest show on turf in the best team in football doesn't feel like you've imagined all these years oh my god what I even thought it would ever be I reached out to his Schmitt because I wanted to know is it different after you are the champ or what happened the year after Falk won league MVP and broke Emmitt Smith's record for touchdowns in a season [Applause] it became personal food for me I wanted to make sure people knew that we were not a food that we were listen not be afraid of accident in 2001 Balto chased perfection even at the end of I have been for years about a fumble no idea how pissed I am thank you very about that humble almoço man I know you don't I don't but I try to come damn close to it fo the Rams finished with an NFL best 14 and 2 record and the most points over a three-year span in NFL history but in the NFC Championship game they sputtered and at the half they trailed when things were tough for us we were seeing something defensively we're struggling with or couldn't handle the one thing you know you could do is hand Marshall the ball and I told them at a halftime brings Montreux to football I pull this a little bit a lot yeah coach more slack hey we're gonna come to you we're gonna come to you gonna come to you some more coach marts ran him so much oh yeah snap what was in his nose [Applause] pants too far up the middle playing spinning [Music] [Applause] in the second half Falk carried the ball 22 times and scored two touchdowns he finished the game with 159 rushing yards [Music] without Marshall we're not the greatest show on turf we're not in my opinion the greatest offense its ever played he was the difference-maker up next hurricane katrina one of the most powerful and dangerous hurricanes ever on record everything that I know as a kid it's underwater make your craft and issues ken stapler a football light Christmas night at night only on NFL Network [Music] Marshall Faulk was a child of New Orleans as a teenager he worked in the Superdome I go down there sell popcorn and that was the closest I could get to watch it NFL football his greatest moment as a high school star came on the Superdome Terk he scored four touchdowns and it was for outstanding touchdowns and I knew from that point on this guy's going to be good as a professional he made history there [Music] [Applause] [Music] Marshall thought up over in Marshall Faulk is now broken the NFL record for touchdowns in a season that's his 26th I'm proud of him for their that's the day we brother the family we failed while I was thinking a Superdome Turk he scored four touchdowns and it was for outstanding touchdowns and I knew from that point on this guy's going to be good as a professional he made history there [Music] [Applause] [Music] Marshall walk up over in Marshall walk is now broken the NFL record for touchdowns in a season that's his 26th I'm proud of him today that's the baby brother the family we failed Wow out of six boys the Superdome was also the site of one of his greatest disappointments in the NFL the number one weapon on that team for us was fought every time he came out of the backfield are lined up whether he got the ball or not he was going to get [Music] they did everything they could because they understood how special he was his run average was still like four and a half or five yards per carry that game we just weren't able to be patient enough to just let him take that game over it's like one of those nightmares would Adam Bennett Airy every time he makes the kick I'm like it never goes right can you just miss it [Music] [Applause] thirty-six [Applause] [Music] every game that I had ever won in New Orleans I had one as the enemy and to have that game be at home and not be the enemy and to lose it it was painful in 2002 the rams began the season with five consecutive losses and in an interview with Bob Costas fart made a statement without saying much at all season preview what's happened here what do you think has happened I have no idea none no no theory if I knew I'd fix it we had some injuries on our offensive line and Bob's questions were not about me my job and how this team could get better it was directed at Harry's I want offensive line Niners you were in the offense a little bit more but not able to bust loose okay what's what Victor I can't do this Bob now you can't get serious I can't there's no way that I will go on record while we are playing the game is about to happen and talk about these guys not doing their jobs no way oh you don't you don't you don't do that kind of stuff he was the greatest most unselfish player that I've ever seen a guy that was ultimately just happy for our team success and ultimately happy for the success of other guys and that to me is what leadership is all about folks leadership got him a Super Bowl ring but his treasured possessions from his childhood are gone forever Hurricane Katrina one of the most powerful and dangerous hurricanes ever on record slammed into the Gulf Coast this morning with winds as high as 140 miles per hour the damage is immense and may take years to undo [Music] every award that we ever won in high school it's all just a memory I would send footballs back and trophies back and all my stuff from the NFL back to my mom's house is gone but look here you can see like I mean the water line is be over my head basketball days you know it's just sad to see it like this man this is crazy this was massive madness destroyed a whole high school Falk has been a part of the recovery effort in the Ninth Ward his playing days in New Orleans were where his dreams began now Fox name will be on his high school field where hopefully if someone can do the same it's always special to come home and when you try to build something that you understand that something is special you kind of need like a beacon of light you need to see something you need to believe in something and you share that with me a part of me you have it with you regardless of where I live where I've been where I've played I always am proud to say that I'm from New Orleans and in the minute they say New Orleans I say I'm from New Orleans we're starting to see recovery now the decision to rebuild my high school I am so thankful for that this is his home own what he did for Carver that was beautiful he came back he never forgot did somebody help deal and he always did say I'm gonna give back they called him Superman he couldn't leap tall buildings in a single bound but he did lift an entire franchise and brought them to a place they had never been Superman's greatest trait wasn't his superhuman strength but his willingness to help others one the most unbelievable guys fell in a locker he taught me so much about not just the game football but about players and the effect things have on a change in hi coach just listened to Marshall that's about how you lead and showing this team that we're all about team you know that we're not about a bunch of individuals and it always starts with your greatest players if they show that and display that it becomes easier for everybody else and that's exactly what Marshall pump was you know usually I have the football you football career is over you walk off the stage lights go off these people forget about you and the only other time you are brought up again is you went to the Hall of Fame and when you go on that team that's the last team you'll ever be on I call that football heaven but you know that's a lofty goal for you guys because I don't know if you guys are willing to commit to uh to each other to win some games telling me ask you this one more time who the best football player in his room okay we got some more hands you have to give you all so the guy next to you if he see you raise your hand and he has his hand up y'all looking at each other knowing you're gonna push the man next to you that's all I just did because I don't care how great you are you need to be pushed beyond the motivation that you have [Music] [Applause] [Music] it's not supposed to happen the bomb the family that's the only way you win in football because every other sport is different that's the beauty of football think about basketball LeBron James and get the ball who go down boom affect the game a pitcher can stand on the mound throw a no-hitter in golf one man in tennis one man in football one man cannot stand on the football field and beat 11 it demands a team effort that's why football is the green sport

Channel: Zach Crutcher

Views: 1,456,410

Rating: 4.7517357 out of 5

Keywords: Marshall Faulk, A Football Life, NFL Network, NFL, Indianapolis Colts, St Louis Rams, Los Angeles Rams, San Diego State Football, Jim Mora, Peyton Manning, Kurt Warner, Torry Holt, Dick Vermeil, Greatest Show on Turf, Super Bowl, Superman, Elusive Running Back, NFL Legends, New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina, Sean Payton, Pro Bowl, Leadership, Motivator, Running Back, NFL Running Back

Id: RfNBp9-PCcU

Length: 44min 32sec (2672 seconds)

Published: Fri Oct 13 2017