Marcus L. Dupree (born May 22, 1964) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the United States Football League (USFL) and National Football League (NFL).
Born and raised in Philadelphia, Mississippi, Dupree's play in high school attracted national attention. A highly touted and sought-after college football recruit, he played for the Oklahoma Sooners, earning Football News Freshman of the Year, second-team All-American and Big Eight Conference Newcomer of the Year honors. He left in the middle of his sophomore season and briefly attended the University of Southern Mississippi. Dupree played spring football for the Golden Eagles and finished college at the university.
Dupree joined the USFL the following season and signed with the New Orleans Breakers in 1984. He played for the Breakers for two seasons before a knee injury forced him to leave the game. He returned to professional football in 1990, playing in 15 games over two seasons in the NFL for the Los Angeles Rams before being waived prior to the 1992 season.
Early life
Marcus L. Dupree was born on May 22, 1964, in Philadelphia, Mississippi. He attended Philadelphia High School, where he played for the Philadelphia Tornadoes high school football team from 1978 to 1981. Dupree also competed in track & field, recording a 4.29 40-yard dash.
As a freshman in 1978, Dupree scored five touchdowns as wide receiver and seven more as a kickoff and punt returner, including a 75-yard kickoff return touchdown on his first play in high school.
As a sophomore in 1979, he was switched to running back and rushed for 1,850 yards and scored 28 touchdowns. He also played on Philadelphia High's basketball team, which finished the year with a 33–4 record and reached the semifinals of the Mississippi state basketball tournament, and played first base and catcher for the baseball team, hitting for a .481 average. In 1981, Marcus's final high school football game was played on the Choctaw Indian Reservation's tribal high school's Warriors Stadium. Author Willie Morris described the audience at Dupree's final high school game as "the most distinctive crowds I had ever seen...four thousand or so people seemed almost an equal of mix of whites, blacks, and Indians...After Marcus scored his touchdown, [Sid Salter] saw Cecil Price, Sr. [a Klansman who had been involved in the murders of Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner during the Civil Rights Movement]. 'He was jumping up and down and cheering as hard as anyone...ain't that a kick in the pants?'"
Dupree was heavily recruited by the major college football programs, and during the final month of the recruiting period, his high school coach, Joe Wood, answered more than 100 phone calls a day from colleges. Oklahoma assistant coach Lucious Selmon spent six weeks in the Downtown Motor Inn in Philadelphia, and after Dupree verbally committed to Fred Akers and the Texas Longhorns while on his visit there, OU head coach Barry Switzer sent former Oklahoma Sooner and Heisman Trophy winner Billy Sims to the town by private plane to appeal to Dupree. On February 12, 1982, Dupree announced he would attend Oklahoma instead of the other finalists, Texas, UCLA, and Southern Miss. For the fourth game Switzer abandoned his favored wishbone offense and made Dupree the tailback in the I formation to take advantage of his skills. He made his first start against Oklahoma State and scored two touchdowns. Among all his other great runs, he also had a 77-yard punt return against Colorado, an 80-yard run against Kansas State, a 70-yard run against Missouri and an 86-yard run against Nebraska.
Despite not starting until the seventh game of the season, Dupree finished with 1,144 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns. He was named second-team All-American, first-team all-Big Eight Conference and Big Eight Newcomer of the Year.
Dupree's much-anticipated sophomore season did not turn out as planned. He reported to campus late, missed the team photo and put on considerable weight. Although Switzer was known for running a loose ship, Dupree's lackadaisical attitude was too much for him, and he called Dupree "lazy." Hampered by injuries, Dupree gained 369 yards on 61 carries with three touchdowns while playing in four of the first five games of the season. After suffering a concussion in a loss against Texas, he vanished for a week. When he resurfaced in Mississippi, he announced he was leaving OU and transferring to the University of Southern Mississippi. Upon being informed that because of NCAA rules, he would have to sit out both the remainder of the 1983 season and the 1984 season, he left after three months.