Word: pruitt
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...understand why people keep I talking about size," Cleveland Browns Running Back Greg Pruitt complains. "Nobody ever asked Columbus how tall he was." Perhaps because, in the words of a contemporary of the Great Discoverer, Columbus was "as regards his exterior person and bodily disposition, more than middling tall." But in the behemoth world of professional football, Pruitt, at 5 ft. 9 in. and 190 Ibs., is more than middling small. From his first day in football as a seventh-grader-when a 4-ft. 4-in. schoolmate looked down at Pruitt (who was an inch shorter) and dubbed...
...Pruitt does not have to look far for company this year; the little guys are making it big in the National Football League. Dashing to touchdowns, leaping to bat down passes or darting past befuddled defenders for a crucial reception, the runts have provided some of the most thrilling moments in a season of slogging defensive domination. Among the best: the Houston Oilers' Billy ("White Shoes") Johnson (5 ft. 9 in., 170 Ibs.) of the end-zone victory dance, scooting past Chicago Bear defenders, then performing the N.F.L.'s first dwarf dunk-a triumphant spike over the goal...
...Pruitt does his share of lurking behind beefy blockers as well. "I can position myself behind my blockers so that a defensive guy has to commit himself just to see where I'm at," Pruitt says. "It's a cat-and-mouse game. He shows up on the outside, I go inside. He shows up inside, I go outside." So far, the mouse is winning; with 761 yards rushing, Pruitt is on his way to his third straight 1,000-yd. season...
Even when the uniforms fit, survival is difficult. Pruitt puts on "a lot of jukes and lateral movement" so that he does not get hit head on. "It's just like two trains colliding-the smaller one is going to take the most punishment." Johnson stares upfield at "an immovable mountain" and pours on the speed to run around it. St. Louis Cardinals Wide Receiver Mel Gray (5 ft. 9 in., 175 Ibs.) dislocated a shoulder trying to take out a bigger man and has since left the blocking to others. "Trying to be a hero, I ran into...
Running back Greg Pruitt was the Cleveland offensive cannon gaining 153 yards on 27 carries, and scoring the touch-down that tied the score...