AztecSportsReport.com - Mom's memory inspires Sullivan against setbacks

October 30, 2009

Tom Shanahan
AztecSportsReport.com Senior Writer

San Diego State junior running back Brandon Sullivan responded to the goal-line fumble at Notre Dame early last season that cost the Aztecs a two-touchdown lead and the game same as he responded to injuries later in the year.

He kept fighting back, working as hard as ever.

The Poway High alum responded to the death of his mother midway through his sophomore year same as he did to the change of coaches after the Aztecs' disastrous 2-10 season.

He kept coming to practice, working as hard as ever, determined to show new head coach Brady Hoke and his staff that SDSU's cupboard of running backs wasn't as bare as they were hearing.

Sure enough, by the end of spring drills, Hoke said he liked what he saw from Sullivan, who emerged as the No. 1 running back on the depth chart.

So where does Sullivan's bulldog determination come from?

"To be honest, I'd have to say it comes from my mom," Sullivan said. "Growing up with my little brother and sister, I tried to take after my mom and how hard she worked. She would work two and three jobs to take care of us. Even when times were hard, she would make things happen for us.

"When times are rough for me, I try to keep my head high. I continue to strive to get better at everything I do."

Sullivan's mother, Rosezina DeLarge, would be proud. She raised him in New Jeresey until his freshman year when he came to Poway to live with his father, Guy Sullivan.

DeLarge passed away unexpectedly last year, and Sullivan missed the Colorado State game when he traveled to New Jersey for the funeral. But even when he returned to finish the 2008 season, injuries prevented him from regaining his form from early in the year. He missed three games with injuries and didn't have any carries in a fourth.

In that fateful Notre Dame game, he had 10 attempts for 66 yards, but in the remaining 10 games only 21 more times. His finished with only 185 yards on 48 carries for 3.9 yards per attempt, although the total was good for second on the team.

"Between the loss of my mother and the injuries, I think I did get lost in the shuffle at the end of the season," Sullivan said. "But I've made sure that myself and my teammates put the past behind us. We work hard to prove we can be depended upon when the time comes. We're working hard to become a better team and better at everything."

Sullivan was tested once again when he was on track to start the season opener before a sprained knee limited his playing time early in the year.

The Aztecs struggled to identify a No. 1 back until true freshman Walter Kazee replaced Sullivan and ran for 101 yards against New Mexico State in the fifth game. Kazee emerged as No. 1 on the depth chart for the next two games against Brigham Young and Colorado State.

Kazee, though, injured his ankle in the CSU game, and Sullivan showed he was ready to prove himself -- in the mantra of of his coaches -- in the 42-28 comeback win that included 35-7 rally in the second half.

"Brandon Sullivan did a really good job of picking up the blitz, and that allowed (quarterback) Ryan (Lindley) time to set his feet in the pocket and throw the ball," Hoke said. "We've still got to do a better job of running the ball, but we were able to run it 32 times, and that helped us with the passing game."

Lindley completed 29-of-43 passes for 459 yards and six touchdowns. Sullivan finished the game with 22 carries for 65 yards, including a long of 13 yards.

A 65-yard day isn't overwhelming, but it's progress on a team averaging 68.9 for the season.

"It wasn't just me that had to be ready," Sullivan said. "Coach Heck (Jeff Hecklinski, running backs coach/assistant head coach) tries to prepare everyone as a starter. In the game of football, guys are going to get hurt and go down. You have to come in and perform like nothing happened. That's what I tried to do when Walter went down. Coach Heck told me to, 'Get ready for a long game, because they're going to pressure us.' "

That "pressure us" reference covered Sullivan's success picking up blitz packages.

Picking up blitzes, and blocking in general, is something Sullivan had to learn at the college level. Like many star high school running backs, he wasn't asked to block as a 1,000-yard rusher -- 1,172 as a junior and 1,556 as a senior.

"It's a team game -- the O-line blocks for running backs and running blocks block for the quarterback," Sullivan said. "It's mostly about physical and mental preparation. Each week have to prepare ourselves. The coaches give us the game plan, we watch a lot of film (strength) coach (Aaron) Wellman has us in the weight room and then it's up to us to be prepared."

The Aztecs, for the first time since Sullivan arrived at SDSU as a three-star recruit, have a chance at a bowl game if they can defeat New Mexico Saturday at Qualcomm Stadium to improve to 4-4.

Success today means Sullivan can put the struggles from the past behind him. A couple of 100-yard games leading the Aztecs to six wins and a bowl bid should put to rest the memory of last year's Notre Dame game.

"As much as I don't want it to, it crosses my mind a lot," Sullivan said. "I always wonder what the season would have been like if that game had turned out differently. I know people say one game can't determine a season, but at the same time we could have had a better season if we won that game. That game crushed us -- it really did. I think it led to the season we had."

It may have crushed a team, but it didn't crush Sullivan. He has bounced back.

It's a trait he learned from his mother, may she rest in peace as she looks down upon her son still fighting back.

Contact Tom Shanahan at shanny4055@aol.com.

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