Manhattan Mercury 03/29/2015: Elder Fulhage recalls time at K-State, in NFL
By Jeff Chapman
Special to The Mercury
To many, Scott Fulhage is a successful local farmer and family man from Beloit. But for some of us who were Kansas State football fans before Bill Snyder was around, Fulhage was the greatest punter in the history of K-State.
You won't find him in the ring of honor - he has been forgotten by many in the new era of Wildcat football.
In the 1980s, while the University of Miami touted the moniker, 'Quarterback U,' K-State was in the midst of one of the longest stretches of sports futility in history.
Need we not be reminded of the statistics, but with such a poor producing offense, there was a glimmer of light.
K-State punted and kicked a lot. How much is a lot? In games against Oklahoma and Nebraska, there were often 12-14 punts a game. One could have called K-State 'Punter/Kicker U' and Fulhage took full advantage, using his leg to eventually get himself to the NFL.
Here is my Q & A with Fulhage: JC : Hi Scott, you live close to Manhattan? Do you go to most of the games?
FULHAGE : Jeff, I do follow the Cats closely, and watch or listen to most all of the games, but with farming, there are few free weekends, and when they are free, I am dedicated to spending time with my two grandchildren.
JC : How did you end up at K-State? How were you recruited?
FULHAGE : I was being heavily recruited by the University of Michigan, but our local car dealership, Fuller Chevrolet, used to donate cars for coaches use back then, and one of the coaches came to visit me when in town to pick up his new car.
JC : So it was Michigan vs. K-State? Seems a bit unfair.
FULHAGE : Ha, Ha (Laughs) You couldn't even compare the two really. I was flown up there and they took me right out on the field of the 'Big House' and said, 'Can you imagine a hundred thousand fans cheering for you every Saturday?' It was overwhelming. The facilities, the weight room, everything was top notch. I got to have breakfast with Bo Schembechler and I saw my first hockey game, it was Notre Dame vs. Michigan, which was pretty cool.
JC : What was Coach Schembechler like?
FULHAGE : He was pretty funny. He asked, 'If you don't come here, where will you go?' I told him Kansas State. He responded with a laugh. 'Isn't that the little school with the funny birds on the helmets?'
JC : What made you even consider anything else?
FULHAGE : I knew I wanted to major in agriculture and become an ag producer. While football was fun, I wanted to go to college to learn, and there was no comparison to the ag programs at K-State and what Michigan had, or didn't have. Michigan tried really hard to convince me though. I received almost 30-40 letters a day from Michigan alumni for the better part of a month. They had an awesome recruiting program.
JC : Tell me about your K-State experience. Jim Dickey?
FULHAGE : Unfortunately, I started off with injury issues. I broke my ankle in high school and started off as a freshman with a medical red shirt. Luckily, K-State already had a pretty good punter, Don Birdsey, and I learned a lot of techniques from him, which made me much better.
FULHAGE : Coach Dickey was great. He was fun to play for and a good coach. Our team from that era is pretty close still. We meet in KC once in a while, even for Coach Dickey's 80th birthday.
JC : Scott, you played from 1980-84. You were part of the famous redshirt experiment team and first-ever K-State bowl. Describe that time as a student athlete.
FULHAGE : Our program had little money and perks. We took long bus rides to most games, rarely flew, and if we did fly it was only coming home one way. Coach would usually tie in a stop at an alumni event or something. Like if we went to Colorado, we might stop in Garden City or Colby on the way. One time after a game, the bus pulled up to Colfax Avenue in Denver and dumped us off. Our only plan was 'The bus will be back to pick you up at 2 a.m.' You can imagine the shape we were in.
JC: Haha, we will leave that to imagination.
I actually attended the bowl game, I believe I was in junior high and my dad said, 'We are going, it may be the only time this happens in our lifetime!'
FULHAGE : Haha, yeah, funny. The whole thing was just unbelievable. We were winning games. Winning that sixth game to be bowl eligible over Colorado felt like we won the Orange Bowl. The whole week in Shreveport was incredible. We had great weather and fun, right up until game time. Then it was a cold blizzard and both teams played bad. No surprise though, our only score was a kick by Steve Willis.
JC : Since your son played at K-State too, you have a great sense of comparisons of the times and the program, tell me about that: FULHAGE : It is amazing what Coach (Bill) Snyder has done. The main difference is the amount of accountability and discipline the players have now. Working out in the off season, getting to class on time, just going to class. The amount of investment financially in the program and the revenue generated today is just unbelievable.
JC : So you think that Coaches like Gibson, Dickey, even Parrish and Rainsberger could have been more successful with greater university support?
FULHAGE : At the time I played, there was so little invested into the program, I know it had to have a negative effect. Plus the fan base was small, not enthusiastic or optimistic, which put the coaches at a major disadvantage. Back in '80-82, nothing was impressive. It was no wonder we couldn't get players to come to nowhere for nothing. I would think so. Yes.
JC : Looking back at the choice between Michigan and K-State, any regrets?
FULHAGE : I would have really loved to have gone to the Rose Bowl and played for a National Championship. That was hard to read and follow knowing I could have been there, but I made great friends in Manhattan and it was just too far away from Beloit, Kansas, so I guess no, no regrets.
JC : Let's talk about your unconventional journey going pro:
FULHAGE : Well, (he laughed) I just made up my mind to give it a shot. The Detroit Lions had been talking to me, so I went to the draft, and nothing happened. I kicked well in tryouts, better than the competition, but I never got signed and it didn't go anywhere, so I just came home.
JC : So when did you finally get a real chance?
FULHAGE : I paid my own way to attend the annual kicking camp and won the competition. That got me an invite to the Redskins training camp. And I actually Thought I made the team. Steve Willis was also there. Mark Mosley was a kicker and punter and was about to retire, so Steve and I both had a chance, and then at the end of the camp, Mosley decides to keep playing and we were both sent home.
The second year, I noticed that Denver, Green Bay, Cincinnati and Atlanta all had bad punters, and I thought maybe there was a spot for me somewhere.
JC : How long did this go on?
FULHAGE : I tried for three seasons, and I even got hung up on when asking for a job. So I just decided that I would try one last ditch effort and write some letters.
Finally in Year 3, Mike Brown with the Bengals invited me to camp based on my letter and he told me, 'We want to give you a shot' and it went really well, but then they signed Greg Horn.
CHAPMAN : So that was it?
FULHAGE : No, I kicked his butt all through preseason in practice and in games and finally on the last day it was down to just him or me to make the team as the last guy on the roster. I was so frustrated that it was even a question so I went to them and I was cut, again. I went home said, I am done, I am going to quit trying. After three seasons trying to play and make a team to play, I was done with the football and the politics.
JC : Well, we know that is not how it ended:
FULHAGE: That happened to be the strike year, and so I was called back to Cincinnati during the strike, and I was leading the NFL averaging 49 yards per punt, eight were over 50. I knew I had finally made it, but I was released again. And then Green Bay picked me up. I didn't know it until after, but Green Bay was just holding me on a roster for Cincy, so I never actually played there, and then the Bengals finally signed me on for real.
JC : How was playing with Boomer Esiason?
FULHAGE: Boomer, Yes, that was interesting. At the time I was playing, the home team provided the game balls and brand new footballs out of the box are horrible for kicking and throwing. The Quarterbacks liked the balls with a tacky surface and the kickers liked the balls softer or broke in.
We would over inflate the balls and take them in the sauna for several hours, then to the weight room to break in the seams over the bar bells. After that we would scuff them up on the turf to get the nice tacky feel the quarterbacks preferred.
I was helping kicker Jimmy Breech the first week I was on the team and Boomer saw me touching the footballs and told me to stop touching them. Boomer didn't want me touching them since I played during the strike, so there was a little tension in the air the first couple of weeks until I proved myself worthy. I was soon just another teammate and all was well.
JC : How did you end up in Atlanta?
FULHAGE : I was injured and released after the Super Bowl. I didn't get to play because of my back. I was traded to the Falcons.
JC : Other than not getting to play, how was the Super Bowl experience?
FULHAGE : Yeah, Lee Johnson punted in my place. It was against the 49ers and it was a great game - we thought we had it won. Up and down the sidelines Boomer was already joking about going to Disneyland, and then Joe Montana ruined that. It was fun to be there, though.
JC : Didn't you get another crack at the 49ers or Montana?
FULHAGE : Yes, It was actually early in 1987 - same season. As I ran onto the field, I remember we had a lead and needed to pin them back deep as time was running out.
'Don't F this up Fulhage!' Boomer said as we passed going on and off the field. But then we didn't punt and I came back off and we didn't' get the first down.
Joe Montana throws a touchdown pass with 2 seconds on the clock to beat us.
JC : You mean because of team loyalty?
FULHAGE : Yes, that. Loyal to finishing college, loyal to the team you play for. I am a huge Cincinnati and Atlanta fan and am still loyal to both, even after being cut.
JC : Do you get together? Stay in touch with the guys?
FULHAGE : Some, more with the Falcons than the Bengals. Their organization just does more with alumni. So I have become closer with the Atlanta guys and go back there more often. I also keep in touch with Steve Willis from K-State, among others.
But in the pros, us kickers and punters hung together, practiced together so those are the ones I am friends with still.
Fulhage retired back to the farm in 1992 following his final season with the Atlanta Falcons.
He and his wife Cyndy have two children; D.J and Camille. Son D.J also punted for K-State in 2008-09.
Copyright © 2015 Manhattan Mercury 03/29/2015
This post was edited on 4/6 4:07 PM by Ed NealyFanClub
This post was edited on 4/6 5:05 PM by Ed NealyFanClub
This post was edited on 4/6 5:13 PM by Ed NealyFanClub
Scott Fulhage KSU Punter
By Jeff Chapman
Special to The Mercury
To many, Scott Fulhage is a successful local farmer and family man from Beloit. But for some of us who were Kansas State football fans before Bill Snyder was around, Fulhage was the greatest punter in the history of K-State.
You won't find him in the ring of honor - he has been forgotten by many in the new era of Wildcat football.
In the 1980s, while the University of Miami touted the moniker, 'Quarterback U,' K-State was in the midst of one of the longest stretches of sports futility in history.
Need we not be reminded of the statistics, but with such a poor producing offense, there was a glimmer of light.
K-State punted and kicked a lot. How much is a lot? In games against Oklahoma and Nebraska, there were often 12-14 punts a game. One could have called K-State 'Punter/Kicker U' and Fulhage took full advantage, using his leg to eventually get himself to the NFL.
Here is my Q & A with Fulhage: JC : Hi Scott, you live close to Manhattan? Do you go to most of the games?
FULHAGE : Jeff, I do follow the Cats closely, and watch or listen to most all of the games, but with farming, there are few free weekends, and when they are free, I am dedicated to spending time with my two grandchildren.
JC : How did you end up at K-State? How were you recruited?
FULHAGE : I was being heavily recruited by the University of Michigan, but our local car dealership, Fuller Chevrolet, used to donate cars for coaches use back then, and one of the coaches came to visit me when in town to pick up his new car.
JC : So it was Michigan vs. K-State? Seems a bit unfair.
FULHAGE : Ha, Ha (Laughs) You couldn't even compare the two really. I was flown up there and they took me right out on the field of the 'Big House' and said, 'Can you imagine a hundred thousand fans cheering for you every Saturday?' It was overwhelming. The facilities, the weight room, everything was top notch. I got to have breakfast with Bo Schembechler and I saw my first hockey game, it was Notre Dame vs. Michigan, which was pretty cool.
JC : What was Coach Schembechler like?
FULHAGE : He was pretty funny. He asked, 'If you don't come here, where will you go?' I told him Kansas State. He responded with a laugh. 'Isn't that the little school with the funny birds on the helmets?'
JC : What made you even consider anything else?
FULHAGE : I knew I wanted to major in agriculture and become an ag producer. While football was fun, I wanted to go to college to learn, and there was no comparison to the ag programs at K-State and what Michigan had, or didn't have. Michigan tried really hard to convince me though. I received almost 30-40 letters a day from Michigan alumni for the better part of a month. They had an awesome recruiting program.
JC : Tell me about your K-State experience. Jim Dickey?
FULHAGE : Unfortunately, I started off with injury issues. I broke my ankle in high school and started off as a freshman with a medical red shirt. Luckily, K-State already had a pretty good punter, Don Birdsey, and I learned a lot of techniques from him, which made me much better.
FULHAGE : Coach Dickey was great. He was fun to play for and a good coach. Our team from that era is pretty close still. We meet in KC once in a while, even for Coach Dickey's 80th birthday.
JC : Scott, you played from 1980-84. You were part of the famous redshirt experiment team and first-ever K-State bowl. Describe that time as a student athlete.
FULHAGE : Our program had little money and perks. We took long bus rides to most games, rarely flew, and if we did fly it was only coming home one way. Coach would usually tie in a stop at an alumni event or something. Like if we went to Colorado, we might stop in Garden City or Colby on the way. One time after a game, the bus pulled up to Colfax Avenue in Denver and dumped us off. Our only plan was 'The bus will be back to pick you up at 2 a.m.' You can imagine the shape we were in.
JC: Haha, we will leave that to imagination.
I actually attended the bowl game, I believe I was in junior high and my dad said, 'We are going, it may be the only time this happens in our lifetime!'
FULHAGE : Haha, yeah, funny. The whole thing was just unbelievable. We were winning games. Winning that sixth game to be bowl eligible over Colorado felt like we won the Orange Bowl. The whole week in Shreveport was incredible. We had great weather and fun, right up until game time. Then it was a cold blizzard and both teams played bad. No surprise though, our only score was a kick by Steve Willis.
JC : Since your son played at K-State too, you have a great sense of comparisons of the times and the program, tell me about that: FULHAGE : It is amazing what Coach (Bill) Snyder has done. The main difference is the amount of accountability and discipline the players have now. Working out in the off season, getting to class on time, just going to class. The amount of investment financially in the program and the revenue generated today is just unbelievable.
JC : So you think that Coaches like Gibson, Dickey, even Parrish and Rainsberger could have been more successful with greater university support?
FULHAGE : At the time I played, there was so little invested into the program, I know it had to have a negative effect. Plus the fan base was small, not enthusiastic or optimistic, which put the coaches at a major disadvantage. Back in '80-82, nothing was impressive. It was no wonder we couldn't get players to come to nowhere for nothing. I would think so. Yes.
JC : Looking back at the choice between Michigan and K-State, any regrets?
FULHAGE : I would have really loved to have gone to the Rose Bowl and played for a National Championship. That was hard to read and follow knowing I could have been there, but I made great friends in Manhattan and it was just too far away from Beloit, Kansas, so I guess no, no regrets.
JC : Let's talk about your unconventional journey going pro:
FULHAGE : Well, (he laughed) I just made up my mind to give it a shot. The Detroit Lions had been talking to me, so I went to the draft, and nothing happened. I kicked well in tryouts, better than the competition, but I never got signed and it didn't go anywhere, so I just came home.
JC : So when did you finally get a real chance?
FULHAGE : I paid my own way to attend the annual kicking camp and won the competition. That got me an invite to the Redskins training camp. And I actually Thought I made the team. Steve Willis was also there. Mark Mosley was a kicker and punter and was about to retire, so Steve and I both had a chance, and then at the end of the camp, Mosley decides to keep playing and we were both sent home.
The second year, I noticed that Denver, Green Bay, Cincinnati and Atlanta all had bad punters, and I thought maybe there was a spot for me somewhere.
JC : How long did this go on?
FULHAGE : I tried for three seasons, and I even got hung up on when asking for a job. So I just decided that I would try one last ditch effort and write some letters.
Finally in Year 3, Mike Brown with the Bengals invited me to camp based on my letter and he told me, 'We want to give you a shot' and it went really well, but then they signed Greg Horn.
CHAPMAN : So that was it?
FULHAGE : No, I kicked his butt all through preseason in practice and in games and finally on the last day it was down to just him or me to make the team as the last guy on the roster. I was so frustrated that it was even a question so I went to them and I was cut, again. I went home said, I am done, I am going to quit trying. After three seasons trying to play and make a team to play, I was done with the football and the politics.
JC : Well, we know that is not how it ended:
FULHAGE: That happened to be the strike year, and so I was called back to Cincinnati during the strike, and I was leading the NFL averaging 49 yards per punt, eight were over 50. I knew I had finally made it, but I was released again. And then Green Bay picked me up. I didn't know it until after, but Green Bay was just holding me on a roster for Cincy, so I never actually played there, and then the Bengals finally signed me on for real.
JC : How was playing with Boomer Esiason?
FULHAGE: Boomer, Yes, that was interesting. At the time I was playing, the home team provided the game balls and brand new footballs out of the box are horrible for kicking and throwing. The Quarterbacks liked the balls with a tacky surface and the kickers liked the balls softer or broke in.
We would over inflate the balls and take them in the sauna for several hours, then to the weight room to break in the seams over the bar bells. After that we would scuff them up on the turf to get the nice tacky feel the quarterbacks preferred.
I was helping kicker Jimmy Breech the first week I was on the team and Boomer saw me touching the footballs and told me to stop touching them. Boomer didn't want me touching them since I played during the strike, so there was a little tension in the air the first couple of weeks until I proved myself worthy. I was soon just another teammate and all was well.
JC : How did you end up in Atlanta?
FULHAGE : I was injured and released after the Super Bowl. I didn't get to play because of my back. I was traded to the Falcons.
JC : Other than not getting to play, how was the Super Bowl experience?
FULHAGE : Yeah, Lee Johnson punted in my place. It was against the 49ers and it was a great game - we thought we had it won. Up and down the sidelines Boomer was already joking about going to Disneyland, and then Joe Montana ruined that. It was fun to be there, though.
JC : Didn't you get another crack at the 49ers or Montana?
FULHAGE : Yes, It was actually early in 1987 - same season. As I ran onto the field, I remember we had a lead and needed to pin them back deep as time was running out.
'Don't F this up Fulhage!' Boomer said as we passed going on and off the field. But then we didn't punt and I came back off and we didn't' get the first down.
Joe Montana throws a touchdown pass with 2 seconds on the clock to beat us.
JC : You mean because of team loyalty?
FULHAGE : Yes, that. Loyal to finishing college, loyal to the team you play for. I am a huge Cincinnati and Atlanta fan and am still loyal to both, even after being cut.
JC : Do you get together? Stay in touch with the guys?
FULHAGE : Some, more with the Falcons than the Bengals. Their organization just does more with alumni. So I have become closer with the Atlanta guys and go back there more often. I also keep in touch with Steve Willis from K-State, among others.
But in the pros, us kickers and punters hung together, practiced together so those are the ones I am friends with still.
Fulhage retired back to the farm in 1992 following his final season with the Atlanta Falcons.
He and his wife Cyndy have two children; D.J and Camille. Son D.J also punted for K-State in 2008-09.
Copyright © 2015 Manhattan Mercury 03/29/2015
This post was edited on 4/6 4:07 PM by Ed NealyFanClub
This post was edited on 4/6 5:05 PM by Ed NealyFanClub
This post was edited on 4/6 5:13 PM by Ed NealyFanClub
Scott Fulhage KSU Punter
