Mike Pruitt
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Michael L. Pruitt (born April 3, 1954) is an American former professional football player who was a fullback for 11 seasons in the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
(NFL) from 1976 to 1986. He was drafted by the
Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (A ...
in the first round (seventh overall pick) of the 1976 NFL Draft and spent nine seasons with that club. He had five seasons with over 1,000 rushing yards and was selected to play in the
Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (starting in 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players. The format has changed thro ...
in
1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the '' International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the '' Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the so ...
and 1980. He also played for the Buffalo Bills for four games in 1985 and for the
Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The ...
in 1985 and 1986. In his NFL career, Pruitt appeared in a total of 152 games, gained 7,378 rushing yards and scored 56
touchdowns A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Amer ...
. A native of
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
, Pruitt also played college football at the fullback position for
Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and mone ...
from 1973 to 1975 and was selected as a second-team running back on the
1975 All-Big Ten Conference football team The 1975 All-Big Ten Conference football team consists of American football players chosen by various organizations for All-Big Ten Conference teams for the 1975 Big Ten Conference football season. Offensive selections Quarterbacks * Cornelius G ...
.


Early years

Pruitt was born in
Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...
in 1954. He attended
Wendell Phillips Academy High School Wendell Phillips Academy High School is a public 4–year high school located in the Bronzeville neighborhood on the south side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. Phillips is part of the Chicago Public Schools district and is managed by the Acad ...
in the Bronzeville District of Chicago.


Purdue University

Pruitt enrolled at
Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and mone ...
and played college football as a fullback for the
Purdue Boilermakers football The Purdue Boilermakers football team represents Purdue University in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of college football. Purdue plays its home games at Ross–Ade Stadium on the campus of Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana. ...
teams from 1973 to 1975. He was known for his combination of speed and strength, having been clocked at 4.4 seconds over 40 yards and bench pressing 425 pounds. Pruitt gained 613 rushing yards on 102 carries in 1974, ranking fifth in the
Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...
with an average of 6.0 yards per carry. He also set a Purdue school record on November 2, 1974, with a 94-yard touchdown run against Iowa. As a senior in 1975, Pruitt gained 899 rushing yards on 217 carries (4.1 yards per carry). Despite not finishing among the top ten in rushing yardage in the conference, he was selected by the conference coaches as a second-team player on the
1975 All-Big Ten Conference football team The 1975 All-Big Ten Conference football team consists of American football players chosen by various organizations for All-Big Ten Conference teams for the 1975 Big Ten Conference football season. Offensive selections Quarterbacks * Cornelius G ...
, placing behind Heisman Trophy winner Archie Griffin and
Gordon Bell Chester Gordon Bell (born August 19, 1934) is an American electrical engineer and manager. An early employee of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) 1960–1966, Bell designed several of their PDP machines and later became Vice President of Engi ...
.


Professional football


1976–1978

Pruitt was selected by the
Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (A ...
in the first round (seventh overall pick) of the 1976 NFL Draft. He remained with the Browns from 1976 to 1984. In his first two seasons with the Browns, Pruitt saw limited playing time as a backup to
Greg Pruitt Gregory Donald Pruitt (born August 18, 1951) is a former American football running back in the National Football League (NFL) from 1973 through 1984. He was selected to five Pro Bowls, four as a member of the Cleveland Browns and one as a member o ...
(no family relationship). In 1978, Pruitt became a starter mid-season. He started nine games at fullback and rushed for 560 yards and five touchdowns.


Peak years: 1979–1983

Following a knee injury to Greg Pruitt, Pruitt had his breakout season in
1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the '' International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the '' Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the so ...
when he started all 16 games at fullback and had career highs with 1,294 rushing yards, 4.9 rushing yards per carry, and 1,666 yards from scrimmage. He ranked fifth in the NFL that year in all three categories. At the end of the 1979 season, he was named a first-team all-conference player and was selected to play in the
1979 Pro Bowl The 1979 Pro Bowl was the NFL's 29th annual all-star game which featured the outstanding performers from the 1978 season. The game was played on Monday, January 29, 1979, at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, California before a crowd ...
. After the 1979 season, Pruitt described his first two years in the NFL as the toughest in his life, but noted that "all that has changed now and I don't look back or worry about that now." In 1980, Pruitt again started all 16 games at fullback for the Browns. He gained 1,034 rushing yards and 1,505 yards from scrimmage and was selected for the second consecutive year to play in the Pro Bowl. Pruitt helped lead the 1980 Cleveland Browns to an 11–5 record and a first-place finish in the AFC Central Division. He started the Browns' one and only playoff game in 1980 and rushed for 48 yards on 13 carries. In
1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...
, Pruitt started 15 games at fullback and gained 1,103 rushing yards and 1,545 yards from scrimmage. However, and after making the playoffs in 1980, the Browns dropped to 5–11 in 1981. During the strike-shortened
1982 NFL season The 1982 NFL season was the 63rd regular season of the National Football League. A 57-day-long players' strike reduced the 1982 season from a 16-game schedule per team to an abbreviated nine game schedule. Because of the shortened season, th ...
, Pruitt gained only 516 rushing yards on 143 carries, an average of only 3.6 yards per carry. Browns coach
Sam Rutigliano Sam William Rutigliano (born July 1, 1931) is a former American football coach and current television football analyst for WEWS, the ABC affiliate in Cleveland. He served as the head coach for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football Leag ...
said that, when Pruitt returned after a 57-day layoff resulting from the strike, he was "a shell of the guy" he had been and was not ready to play, "either mentally or physically." In 1983, Pruitt compiled his fourth and final 1,000 yard rushing season. He started 14 games at running back for the Browns and gained 1,184 rushing yards and 1,341 yards from scrimmage. During his peak years from 1979 to 1983, Pruitt gained 6,713 yards from scrimmage in 72 games, an average of 93.2 yards per game.


1984–1986

In 1984, Boyce Green took over as the Browns' lead running back. Pruitt's playing time declined, as he appeared in 10 games, but only seven as a starter. He rushed for 506 yards and six touchdowns on 163 carries. The Browns released Pruitt in early September 1985, as part of the final round of cuts before the start of the regular season. At the time of his release, Pruitt said he was "surprised, but not bitter." Two weeks after being cut by the Browns, Pruitt signed with the Buffalo Bills. He appeared in four games, two as a starter, for the 1985 Bills team. He carried the ball seven times for the Bills, totaling 24 yards from scrimmage. Pruitt joined the
Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The ...
in the middle of the 1985 season. He started eight games for the Chiefs in 1985 and gained 366 rushing yards with two touchdowns. The following year, Pruitt started 15 games at fullback for the 1986 Kansas City team. He gained 448 yards and scored two touchdowns in his final NFL season.


Career statistics

Pruitt played in 152 games during his career, rushing for 7,378 yards and 51 touchdowns on 1,844 carries (4.0 yards per carry). He also caught 270 passes for 1,860 yards and five touchdowns. He ranks third in Browns' franchise history in career rushing yardage trailing only Jim Brown and
Leroy Kelly Leroy Kelly (born May 20, 1942) is a former American football player. A Pro Football Hall of Fame running back, he played for the Cleveland Browns in the National Football League (NFL) from 1964 to 1973. Career Kelly had attended Simon Gratz H ...
.


Later years

After retiring from football, Pruitt owned a
Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...
dealership in Lima, Ohio, and a
Honda is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles, and power equipment, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, reaching a producti ...
dealership in
Akron, Ohio Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city prop ...
. He sold his Ford dealership in approximately 2006, then his Honda dealership in 2014. As of 2003, he lived in
Strongsville, Ohio Strongsville is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States, and a suburb of Cleveland. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 44,750. The city's nickname 'Crossroads of the Nation,' originated from the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O ...
. Pruitt was inducted into the Greater Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame in 2003. In 2013, he was named by ''
The Plain Dealer ''The Plain Dealer'' is the major newspaper of Cleveland, Ohio, United States. In fall 2019, it ranked 23rd in U.S. newspaper circulation, a significant drop since March 2013, when its circulation ranked 17th daily and 15th on Sunday. As of Ma ...
'' as the 38th best player in Browns' history. Currently, he serves as a Jehovah's Witness in Cleveland.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pruitt, Mike 1954 births Living people American football fullbacks Buffalo Bills players Cleveland Browns players Kansas City Chiefs players Purdue Boilermakers football players American Conference Pro Bowl players Players of American football from Chicago