William Fuller (American football)
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Position: | 1984 / Round: 1 / Pick: 21 | ||||
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Player stats at NFL.com · PFR | |||||
William Henry Fuller Jr. (born March 8, 1962) is an American former professional
Early years
Fuller was born in
College career
Fuller attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he played defensive line for the
As a senior, he had 81 tackles, a team-leading five sacks, and 22 tackles for loss.
While at UNC, Fuller helped lead the Tar Heels to three bowl games, made the All-ACC team three times, and the All-America team twice (1982 and 1983).[5] He graduated in 1986 with a degree in psychology.[2] Fuller was later inducted into UNC's sports hall of fame,[6] and selected as a member of the ACC's 50th Anniversary Football Team in 2002.[5]
Professional career
Fuller was selected by the
Fuller joined the NFL after the USFL folded in 1986 and his rights were subsequently traded by the Rams to the Houston Oilers where he started his career in the NFL. After recording a total of 3 sacks in his first two seasons,[9] Fuller emerged in 1988 and tied for the team lead in sacks with 8.5.[10] He was described as the most improved defensive player on the team by head coach Jerry Glanville.[11]
After recording 14.5 sacks over 1989 and 1990,
He subsequently played three stellar seasons in 1994, 1995, and 1996. He recorded 9.5 sacks in his first season there (1994) and set a team record for most consecutive games with a sack at seven.[14] Fuller had 13 sacks in each of the following two seasons (1995 and 1996),[9] and was named to the Pro Bowl in each of his three seasons with the Eagles.[7] After the 1996 season Fuller signed a two-year $5.6 million contract with the San Diego Chargers, while there his production steeply declined.[15]
After two seasons, in which he recorded three sacks each,[9] Fuller retired following the 1998 season. By the time his NFL career ended Fuller had recorded 100.5 sacks becoming one of the few players in NFL history to record more than 100 sacks.[16]
NFL career statistics
Year | Team | GP | Tackles | Interceptions | Fumbles | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Cmb | Solo | Ast | Sck | Int | Yds | TD | FF | FR | Yds | TD | |||
1986 | HOU | 13 | 22 | — | — | 1.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1987 | HOU | 12 | 22 | — | — | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
1988 | HOU | 16 | 56 | — | — | 8.5 | 1 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1989 | HOU | 15 | 42 | — | — | 6.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1990 | HOU | 16 | 50 | — | — | 8.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
1991 | HOU | 16 | 54 | — | — | 15.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
1992 | HOU | 15 | 52 | — | — | 8.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 1 |
1993 | HOU | 16 | 37 | — | — | 10.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1994 | PHI | 16 | 50 | 44 | 6 | 9.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
1995 | PHI | 14 | 46 | 35 | 11 | 13.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
1996 | PHI | 16 | 34 | 27 | 7 | 13.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
1997 | SD | 16 | 29 | 24 | 5 | 3.0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
1998 | SD | 13 | 22 | 18 | 4 | 3.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Total[9] | 194 | 516 | 148 | 33 | 100.5 | 2 | 9 | 0 | 19 | 8 | 13 | 1 |
Personal life
Fuller has four daughters by his wife Precilla, Karen, Krystal, Kimberly, and Kalisa.
Fuller is also a noted philanthropist, who was actively involved in programs relating to
Fuller currently owns and operates his own
References
- ^ a b c Robinson, Tom. You can go home again; Just ask William Fuller, The Virginian-Pilot, March 28, 1996, accessed February 26, 2007.
- ^ a b c William Fuller, espn.com, accessed March 12, 2009.
- ^ All-America Julius Peppers, cstv.com, accessed April 30, 2007.
- ^ a b c d William Fuller, chargers-stats.com, accessed February 27, 2007. Archived September 27, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b c "ACC Announces 50th Anniversary Football Team". National Football Foundation. July 23, 2002. Retrieved April 30, 2007.
- ^ a b c d e f The Class of 2004: William Fuller, virginiasportshalloffame.com, accessed March 4, 2007. Archived September 28, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b c William Fuller, sportingnews.com, accessed February 26, 2007.
- ^ "1984 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2023-10-10.
- ^ a b c d e f William Fuller Archived 2007-02-07 at the Wayback Machine, databasefootball.com, accessed February 26, 2007.
- The Houston Chronicle, August 7, 1989, accessed April 2, 2007.
- ^ McClain, John. Sack man/William Fuller setting pace for improved Oiler defense, The Houston Chronicle, September 4, 1988, accessed April 2, 2007.
- ^ 1991 NFL Sacks, jt-sw.com, accessed April 30, 2007.
- ^ a b c Kravitz, Gary. Where Are They Now: DE William Fuller, philadelphiaeagles.com, December 17, 2004, accessed April 2, 2007. Archived March 17, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ William Fuller Career notes, espn.com, accessed March 12, 2009.
*Eagles Timeline, philadelphiaeagles.com, accessed February 27, 2007. - ^ King, Peter. Inside the NFL: Dispatches, sportsillustrated.cnn.com, November 19, 1997, accessed February 26, 2007.
- ^ All time leaders: sacks, espn.com, accessed February 26, 2007.
- ^ a b c Ducibella, Jim. Injury only compounds Fuller's season of grief, The Virginian-Pilot, October 15, 1995, accessed February 26, 2007.
- ^ Krumrie, Matt. "Just" Coach Fuller, nflhs.com, accessed April 30, 2007. Archived September 27, 2007, at the Wayback Machine