Hall of Fame
Many athletes only dream of getting drafted into the pros. For others, the thought of having a tryout with a professional team is enough to make the dream a reality. Kevin Russell lived the dream of having pro football teams look at him - Pittsburgh Steelers, Philadelphia Eagles, Detroit Lions and Kansa City Chiefs. Then, his dream continued as he worked out during the preseason for a quarterback position with the Kansas City Chiefs. Unfortunately, the professional dream didn’t go as he anticipated.
“Toward the end of my career at California, I went through the spring time getting ready for the draft. I was told that I might be a late-round draft pick, so I sat around and waited. I didn’t get drafted, and I was very disappointed. Then I had four contract offers. I chose Kansas City. I thought that I had the best opportunity to go out there and be able to play. I went out there that spring for a week worth of testing, conditioning, being with the coaches, and getting acclimated with the city and the stadium,” said Russell, a 1997 Hall of Fame inductee.
“I thought that I could play at that level. I worked real hard over the summer and gained a good deal of weight. I got stronger, faster and bigger, and I went into camp. I was there for nine weeks and it came down to a young running back and special teams specialist from Nebraska and me. He had an incredible game when we played the Cincinnati Bengals in a preseason game; he ran back a kickoff for a touchdown and had some nice returns after that. He made the team because of that football game, and I got a ticket to go home,” he continued.
While he was a student at Thomas Jefferson High School, Russell participated in both football and basketball. He was a two-time all-conference basketball and football player in 1979 and 1980. He also was honored as Thomas Jefferson’s athlete of the year during his senior year in high school. Russell considered giving up football, but stuck with it because of Thomas Jefferson’s long-standing Friday night tradition.
“I was going to quit football my freshman year in high school to concentrate on basketball. One of the assistant coaches pulled me aside and asked me to come out for football. So, I did, and I continued to play football from then on. Probably one of the only reasons I stayed or even played football was because of Thomas Jefferson’s deep tradition in football, in winning, in the way the school rallied around the football program,” Russell said.
“I think because of that tradition and everyone’s philosophy or goal or desire was to be a part of Friday night in the fall, whether that be the band, majorettes, football team or cheerleaders. I think that anytime you are involved in a program that wins and you are filling the stadium up with eight or nine thousand people every week, it adds a little excitement and fun to the game,” he continued.
The main reason that Russell came to California University of Pennsylvania after high school was Jeff Petrucci. Petrucci was a high school football coach for Belle Vernon, a team that was available to beat Thomas Jefferson twice while Russell played. Petrucci had a job offer from Indiana State University in Indiana to be an assistant coach, but he chose to stay home and work at California. Russell was one of his first recruits.
“I was touted as the guy who was going to come in and turn the program around. There were a lot of different things written about me, and it put the pressure on me. Coming into a program that wasn’t accustomed to winning, I had come from a high school program that wasn’t accustomed to losing, ever,” said Russell, who didn’t play his freshman season.
“Going from TJ to California was quite an adjustment. They were a .500 or less football team when I started. Prior to that, they really didn’t have a winning season since 1968. That was 15-some odd years,” he continued.
During Russell’s three-year football career at California, he made his mark on the field. He was a two-time MVP for the Vulcans, a two-time all-conference and All-American quarterback and the offensive player of the year in the PSAC. In 1983, he led Division II in passing yardage. Russell finished his career in 1984 by guiding his team to a win over Bloomsburg in the PSAC State Championship. In that game, he completed 30-of-47 passes for 257 yards and two touchdowns.
Russell graduated from California in 1985 with a radio and television communications degree and a “minor or semi-major” in business and management. Failing to make the Chiefs didn’t end Russell’s professional aspirations. He traveled to Ottawa for a tryout with the Rough Riders, a Canadian Football League team. That experience didn’t go as well as he had anticipated either.
“That was just a fiasco up there. I was only up there for about three weeks. I went to the NFL in the fall of 1985, and in the spring of 1986 I went up and froze my butt off in Ottawa. I signed a real big contract and was told that I was going to be one of the guys. I went to the press conference and found out that I was one of 11 quarterbacks who signed. So, I had a real bad taste I came home and started working for (radio station) KQV and thought my football playing days were over,” Russell said.
Russell’s football playing days weren’t over, though. He played two seasons with the Pittsburgh Gladiators, an arena football league team.
“The way arena football came about was that KQV became the flagship broadcast radio station for the Pittsburgh Gladiators. The head coach knew that I was in town and he knew of me because of his buddies throughout professional football. He had some injuries that had created some problems for him at the quarterback position. Midway through the football season, he called and asked me if I would be willing to come out and throw the ball with the team,” Russell said.
“I went out and threw, and they signed me to a contract. I only played a couple of games because that was all that was left in the season and the other quarterbacks came back. The following year I was asked to come back and go to training camp in Florida. So, I ended up playing another season,” he continued.
Russell is not a stranger to receiving awards from his alma mater. He has received the Young Alumni Award and the California Distinguished Service Award since graduating. Now, he is being inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame as a member of the third class.
“I considered being a member of any hall of fame, and more importantly, the Hall of Fame at California, to be a real honor. There is another part of too, since I have more children (Jessica, Steven, Rachel and a baby due in July). We all look for ways in which we can bring some pride to our family name and kids. It is sort of like leaving a legacy. This is one of those things that is a good positive thing that I can leave for my kids. They can say that their dad played football and did well enough to get inducted into a hall of fame,” Russell said.
“I can’t say enough about my four years at California. If I could do it again, I would do it all over. I wouldn’t change a thing. It was a tremendous experience. As far as I was concerned, that was where I was supposed to be. I wasn’t supposed to be at Pitt, WVU or Penn State. I was supposed to be at California, and that was one of the best decisions that I ever made,” he said.
Kevin Russell was Cal's starting quarterback from 1982-84 and concluded his stellar career as the PSAC's most prolific offensive player. He helped the 1983 and 1984 Vulcans compile 7-3 and 8-3 records respectively. The 1983 team's seven victories were the most by a Cal team since 1960. The 1984 team overcame a near disastrous 1-3 start and reeled off seven-straight victories to give Cal its first outright PSAC football title since 1958. Russell earned PSAC West Player of the Week honors in Cal's 31-14 upset of IUP for the 1984 PSAC West title after completing 24-of-39 passes for 258 yards and two touchdowns. He also scored a touchdown in that game. The next week, Russell completed 30-of-47 passes for 257 yards and two more TD's as Cal beat Bloomsburg 21-14 at Hershey for the PSAC title.
Russell finished with 7,012 total offensive yards, which still ranks ninth in PSAC history through the 1996 season. He led the entire NCAA Division II in passing with 2,642 yards in 1983 and was a two-time All-American, All-PSAC and All-ECAC selection. Russell was also selected as the 1984 PSAC West Player of the Year. He is originally from Pittsburgh and a graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School.
After his senior year, Russell had tryouts with the NFL's Kansas City Chiefs and the CFL’s Ottawa RoughRiders before playing two years of arena football in Pittsburgh. Following his football days, Russell was a Radio Sales Associate for KQV and WTAE and a Sales Associate for Orthopedic Medical.
Russell is currently a Remax Realtor and resides in South Park with his wife Sharon. They have three children - Jessica, Steven, and Rachel.
