Dupree remembers friends with him along the way
Philadelphia’s Marcus Dupree is now enshrined in the National High School Football Hall of Fame.
Dupree and 21 others were among the inaugural class of the National High School Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, inducted during ceremonies on Sunday.
“I didn’t write a speech, it came right from the heart and I had a lot to say,” Dupree said. “Just to be able to go in the first class with the likes of Jim Brown, Archie Griffin, Archie Manning, the Manning family, Peyton, Eli, Cooper. It means a lot to the city of Philadelphia, my parents, grandparents and the guys I grew up with, Charles “Tree” McAfee, Michael Smith, Scottie Wilson, and Alvin Kidd. We all made a pact. If one made it, we all made it. So, we all made it.
“It's not all about me. You have people along the way. You have to have the right people around. The situation has to be right. God is good. God has watched over me. I am blessed,” Dupree said.
It has been more than 40 years since Dupree wore the uniform of the Philadelphia High School Tornadoes, playing before packed stands at Harpole Stadium. During his four years at Philadelphia, he scored 87 touchdowns and rushed for 7,355 yards.
“Coach (Joe) Wood and I talked about this,” Dupree said. “There were times I was taken out of the games at the half, If I had played the entire game, I could have had 10,000 yards.”
Books have been written and documentaries have been made about Dupree’s recruitment by the big-time college football powers. At the time, a who’s who of college head coaches lined up in front of his house, waiting to talk to him and his mother.
The pressure was intense. Dupree once told the story that while he was going to class one day, actress Farrah Fawcett called him, recruiting him for the Texas Longhorns.
“I didn’t know it at the time but it was an experience to go through,” Dupree said. “I’m just an ole country boy. It was like water running off a duck’s back.
“The guys around me kept it real. They weren’t able to come (to Canton) but they were there in spirit. Steve Wilkerson and his wife were there and a few other people. I appreciated that.”
Dupree signed with Oklahoma and had an outstanding freshman year. Midway through his sophomore year, he was injured, went home and never went back. After briefly attending the University of Southern Mississippi, he entered the USFL draft. He was drafted by the New Orleans Breakers. In his second season, he suffered a devastating knee injury that ended his USFL career.
Dupree made a comeback in 1990 and played two seasons with the Los Angeles Rams, After he was released going into his third season, he retired from playing football.
“There were so many guys who brought my name up (during the induction speeches),” Dupree said. “They said they couldn’t believe they were going into the Hall with me, and I couldn’t believe I was going in with them.”
When asked for his thoughts about Dupree going into the hall of fame, his former teammate and friend Alvin Kidd summed it up: “He deserves it. He was the best running back I have ever seen.”