The Wheel of Shooting Guards
December 23, 2014Cleveland Browns vs. Carolina Panthers: Behind the Box Score
December 23, 2014I don’t wear the jerseys of my favorite sports figures. Hey, to each his own—if that’s something you are into, have at it. Maybe it’s just that since I am old enough to be the father of all college and most pro athletes, it would feel strange.
If I were to own player jerseys, however, one of them would be the Browns’ number 34 of multi-purpose weapon Greg Pruitt. My fondness for him stems from when I was a young kid and he was leading the Oklahoma Sooners’ offense to some of the best seasons in college football history.
It didn’t hurt that we shared our first name. It is rare to find an estimable Greg on the national stage. Think Greg Brady. I liked Graig Nettles, but the Indians had a policy against having good players on their roster so they traded him to the Yankees (spit). Greg Pruitt was a very cool Greg. At 5-foot-7, 156 pounds in college, he was smaller than almost everyone else on the field. He was also the fastest. I couldn’t believe it when my Cleveland Browns selected him with the 30th-overall pick in the 1973 NFL Draft, after the soon-to-be-forgotten first round picks of Steve Holden and Pete Adams.
Greg Pruitt was from Houston, Texas, close enough in proximity to where Browns linebacker Robert L. Jackson grew up that they’d played some sandlot baseball against each other. Then-Oklahoma assistant coach Barry Switzer has said that Sooner recruiter Bill Michaels had his eye on Elmore High School in the inner city in Houston. “He had been down there for years and recruiting, knew the coach Wendell Moseley well, and he was sold on this kid. Problem is, he is the only one. He had to come sell me and (head coach) Chuck Fairbanks, and I’ll tell ya, I worked him out and violated the NCAA rules.” Switzer has been one of several who have related the later story of how pro scouts would watch him quietly for a while, then invariably ask, “Greg, how tall are you?” Finally, one day, Greg Pruitt stopped and made an emphatic point to the scouts. He said, “You know, we run this way (motioning left and right), not that way (up and down) at Oklahoma.” Switzer had tee-shirts made in Pruitt’s honor that said “Hello” on the front and “Goodbye” on the back. The shirt was publicized nationally, and Switzer warned him that one of those shirts would be hanging in the locker room of the opponent in their next big game, against USC. Pruitt gained over 200 yards in the Oklahoma win.
Pruitt used his size to his advantage. Nobody could get a clean hit on him. He also had a little Deion Sanders in his demeanor off the field, speaking confidently with a smile that shone brightly with a gold tooth. Pruitt’s persona was much larger than his physical stature, leading to his college teammates giving him the nickname “The King.”
“I got it as a player. Some players today don’t understand that it’s the fans that make you.”
The term “wishbone” is credited to a Houston sportswriter; it is an offensive formation with typically one tight end and one wideout. In the backfield is the fullback, directly behind the quarterback, along with two halfbacks behind and to either side of the fullback. The effect from a bird’s eye view is that of a chicken wishbone. As with options featured in today’s offenses, the idea is to take advantage of a mismatch that the quarterback can identify. The quarterback always at least fakes a handoff to the fullback in the wishbone; he might decide to give it to him if the defense appears vulnerable up the middle. If he does not hand the ball off to the fullback, he runs along the line with the halfback right behind him. The defensive player stringing out the play eventually must commit to either the quarterback or the halfback. Whom he commits to dictates whether the quarterback keeps the ball or pitches to the trailing halfback.
The Oklahoma Sooners copied their rivals from Texas, and ran the wishbone all the way into the 1990s. And Greg Pruitt has been described as the “patriarch” of this offense. In 1971, with Pruitt as the featured runner, the Sooners set the all-time NCAA rushing average record of 472.4 yards per game, a record which still stands. (Many games resembled rushing attacks the Browns have encountered in the years since their expansion: the cumulative yardage often was only limited by the 100-yard-long playing field.)
Of course, by the time Greg Pruitt joined the Browns, he’d grown much larger… to 5-foot-9 and 190 pounds ((Hmm…How might Bengals coach Marvin Lewis have described him?). He played in four Pro Bowls. He was an heir to the Browns’ running back tradition, taking over for Leroy Kelly. He was a multi-purpose threat- as a runner, a receiver, and as a punt and kick returner. His return ability was every bit as dangerous as today’s premier returners. One of my favorite plays was the halfback option pass, with Pruitt pulling up to throw. During his years with the Browns (1973 – 1981), he was 8-for-18 passing with six touchdowns.
As a runner, he enjoyed three 1000 yard seasons in a row from 1975 through 1977. In 1978, he caught 65 passes, including four touchdowns. Remember when Art Modell moved the team, and was compelled to leave the “name, the colors, and the history” of the Browns in Cleveland? Greg Pruitt is at the top of many of those lists of offensive and return records for the franchise.
Many remember Greg Pruitt because of the Greg Pruitt Rule, which bans the use of tearaway jerseys. Several players had used these over the years; Pruitt would get dozens of these mesh jerseys made at a time and the concept is most often credited to him. He’d slash through defenses, which often at most could only get a hand on him. They’d end up with only a handful of jersey as he scooted away. There were two problems with this: One, to make this work, Pruitt could not wear a shirt under the tear-away, otherwise the defense would just grab the undershirt. Having to replace his shirts amidst the cold winds of winter on Lake Erie bothered him. And two, defenses figured out that when his shirts were torn, the officials made him leave the game due to a rules infraction. So during important parts of the game, they would just walk up to him and rip his jersey to send him to the sidelines. Pruitt stopped wearing the tearaways, and the NFL soon outlawed them as well.
During the Kardiac Kids era in Cleveland, Pruitt was hobbled with leg injuries and only played sporadically. He was traded to the Los Angeles Raiders for the 1982 season along with Lyle Alzado and was almost exclusively a returner, making the Pro Bowl again in 1983. Browns’ head coach Sam Rutigliano later said he regretted letting Pruitt go. His better judgment would have been to keep him as a receiver. While he was in L.A., he helped groom rookie running back Marcus Allen.
Head coach Forrest Gregg maintains Greg Pruitt should be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Greg Pruitt settled in Cleveland after his career was over. He currently owns a local construction business. His son, Greg Pruitt Jr., was a star running back for Shaker Heights High School, and then for North Carolina Central University from 2004 through 2006. Upon graduation, he received some local flack for his tryout as an undrafted free agent for the Baltimore Ravens. On February 24, 2008, he was the victim of a shocking, senseless attack during a robbery attempt at his cousin’s home in Shaker Heights. He was shot in the head and critically wounded. After several weeks in the hospital, he was released; fortunately, the bullet missed his brain. Reportedly, Greg Pruitt Jr. is completely recovered today.
Greg Pruitt remains one of my favorite Browns. Unlike many expansion-era Browns, who seem to care about the team less than their supporters do, he maintains he “always did appreciate the Cleveland fans. I got it as a player. Some players today don’t understand that it’s the fans that make you.”
6 Comments
Much like Jerry Sherk, so many younger Browns fans know nothing about what he could do because his prime years were on crappy teams. He WAS the reason you watched, even when the Noll-era Steelers were kicking our behinds, he was who you pretended to be as a kid escaping tackles in pick up games. Was a slightly lesser version of Barry Sanders, outrageous escapability, a threat to take it to the house every play or (more often behind crappy blocking) create a heroic 3 yard gain from a certain 3 yard loss. Had moves within moves, great on slippery turf, rarely took a clean shot, and attempted stuff like changing direction and circling back to find an opening that gave you a heart attack. I think he wasn’t more loved then because everyone still had Leroy Kelly and Jim Brown fresh on the mind so it was expected we’d have another great RB.
And he carried a heavy load on those bad teams. They handed or threw to him so often, much like with Peyton Hillis that one year with Colt. Great player.
Great piece. My Dad always talks about guys like Kelly and Pruitt and how they are completely under-appreciated.
When I think of #34, I think of Kevin Mack.
Just my age showing, but I remember Mike more than Greg. But my Grandfather LOVED him, so that was endorsement enough for me
I echo what Harv said. Pruitt’s one of my all-time favorites. Great, great fun to watch. It’s a shame he was on so many bad teams. I think the only playoff game we got to during his career here was the Red Right 88 game, which he played well in, making some nice catches in that brutal weather.
Great memories Harv, which I share. He also was a star on the team that lost to Nebraska int he 1971 game of the century. Still, one of the greatest games I ever saw, his duel with Johnny Rogers of Nebraska was terrific. Pruitt was extremely strong for a person of such small stature.
Pruitt won the bench press competition on Superstars. I think he won the whole competition as well.