From Chief to MegaChunn: Troy’s 13 Greatest Rushing Performances
The official record book says Kimani Vidal ran for 242 yards on Saturday. Only one other Troy University running back has ever picked up more rushing yards on the ground in a single game.
Late penalties prevented Vidal from passing Eddie Brundidge’s record, but it’s still the second greatest rushing performances in Trojan history.
THROW IT ALL OUT. KIMANI VIDAL RUSHED FOR 200 YARDS IN TWO CONSECUTIVE GAMES.
- The only other Trojan to do that was Eddie Brundidge.
- He came two yards shy of breaking Brundidge’s single-game record against ULM.
- He scored four rushing touchdowns against Arkansas State, which ties the record for most in a 200-yard game… also set by Eddie Brundidge.
Okay. Wow. Back to your regularly-scheduled article.
Ten Trojans have ever rushed for more than 180 yards, and they’ve done it 12 13 times total. Here’s that list.
Vidal’s ULM performance was the first time a Trojan has rushed for more than 200 yards since 2012, and the first time a Trojan rushed for more than 230 since 2008.
In fact, only six Troy running backs have ever rushed for more than 200 yards, and again, Vidal and Brundidge did it twice… in back-to-back games. We’ve covered Chief’s accomplishment before, too.
“You know what, I’m going to be straight up honest – once I saw that they (Troy) had the game I was kind of apprehensive,” Brundidge told the Dothan Eagle the day after the ULM game. “But then I was thinking, ‘Well, it’s time for a change.’
(Jon Johnson did a great interview with the now-Houston Academy head coach at the link. Finish this story, then go read that one.)
He may be right though. Change is somewhat overdue.
Granted, Troy has been known for its passing offense many times throughout the years: from the pro style that won the NAIA championship to the freshman record-breakers in Corey Robinson and Brandon Silvers.
Sprinkled in among the cannon arms have been solid workhorses and bellcows like DeWhitt Betterson and Jordan Chunn. Unfortunately, none of them broke the mold.
Brundidge’s record has stood for 36 years, and all six other attempts have come in the past 20. None of them cracked 240 though, until Vidal on the previous Saturday.
Brundidge broke his own record, but that first performance broke a 22-year-old record of its own.
Two years before Billy Atkins brought in a Georgia quarterback and a pro-style offense, a Troy running back broke 180 yards on the ground by himself.
It’s a legend that’s sat buried in the Troy record book for ages: the first great Trojan rushing performance.
His name was Jerry Reaves.
(Note: The game pics are from the 1964 Presbyterian College game.)
On September 26, 1964, Troy hosted West Alabama in its home and conference opener.
Reaves exploded for 182 yards against the Tigers, and the Trojans won 8-0. The current stat book doesn’t have the number of carries… but newspapers at the time do.
That’s 14 yards per carry. For a modern equivalent, Old Dominion’s Blake Watson ran for 259 yards on 19 carries against Coastal Carolina.
That’s only 13.6 yards per carry.
Before Troy installed a modern pro-style offense in 1968, the Trojans had a modern running back in Reaves, and it made a difference that year.
In 1963, the Trojans only won two games. Troy went 6-3 the next year, 2-1 in conference.
Only one other Trojan ran for more yards with a higher YAC, and he was one of the 2000s’ many power backs: Kenny Cattouse.
Cattouse became the third Trojan to rush for more than 200 yards in a single game against FIU in 2007. He picked up 208 yards on just 14 carries… for a YAC of 14.86.
Imagine having a running back guarantee you nearly 15 yards every time he touches the ball.
That wasn’t even the most electric performance from the five-peat, either. The very next year, DuJuan Harris came closer to breaking Brundidge’s record than anyone else… until the ULM game of course.
I love that the scan I found has the opponent’s score scratched out and its logo covered up. The picture doesn’t tell you that the Ragin’ Cajuns gave up 234 yards to DuJuan Harris.
Also, their quarterback at the time? Current head coach Mike Desormeaux.
Harris helped crush Louisiana-Lafayette en route to a third-straight Sun Belt title.
Four years and two more titles later, another Troy back broke the 200-yard mark. That performance had more to do with moral victories than conference titles though.
Shawn Southward became the fifth Trojan to break 200 yards in a game, picking up 204 against UAB. It’s odd because this performance happened in week one.
Cattouse and Reaves are the only other two Trojans to break 180 yards… and not do it in November.
Nine of the top eleven performances happened between November 15 and November 30. Five of the top ten happened between November 15 and November 19… including the ULM game.
Troy’s best rushing tends to happen in the last few games of the year, and the easiest correlation there is colder temperatures.
Eddie Brundidge set both records in November 1986. A decade and a day after the first record fell, Joe Jackson ran for 189 yards against Sam Houston State.
At the time, it was the second-best Troy rushing performance ever.
(It was a 35-14 blowout, and local papers and the Palladium both failed me on visual references.)
Three years later, Phillip Jones nearly matched it in a game against No. 19 Stephen F. Austin… in November. Jones ran for 183 yards, besting Reaves’ mark, and the No. 1 Trojans won 27-7.
(Note: again, neither picture is from the game referenced.)
Brundidge’s first record was broken on November 15. Two other games on this list also happened on that date… and all three backs are among the greatest in Troy history.
Let’s start with arguably the most recognizable: DeWhitt Betterson.
The record went from Reaves to Brundidge. Jackson was the first to challenge Brundidge’s records, and Betterson was the first to break one.
On November 15, 2003, Betterson became the second Troy back to run for more than 200 yards. His 230 yards beat Brundidge’s first record by just four, but they were 14 shy of the all-time mark.
The next year, he followed that performance with a 184-yard burst against Idaho, becoming the second Trojan to break 180 yards in a single game twice.
Ten years later, the Vandals fell victim to another great Troy running back…
One with a nickname.
The “MegaChunn” legend technically grew in the 2016 season, aided by dominant performances against Southern Miss and LSU.
Jordan Chunn was a well-established force before Neal Brown took over, though. Coach Larry Blakeney’s last win came in the Kibbie Dome, powered perhaps by Chunn’s greatest performance ever.
That performance was a brief glimpse of the near future, but it also carried ties to the past.
On November 15, 2014, the 11th anniversary of Betterson’s 200-yard game and the 28th anniversary of Brundidge’s first record, Chunn, a sophomore, tied Jackson’s 189-yard mark. It took 28 carries, the same number of carries Southward, Harris and Jones used to make the list, too.
At this point it’s bad numerology, but it’s at least some crazy coincidences.
That brings us to Vidal’s incredible performances the last two weeks. We’ll all discuss the penalties at the end of the ULM game, but until the single-game record is broken, Vidal’s name will be forever etched in the pantheon of great Troy running backs, right alongside Eddie Brundidge.
