Working Man's Back

Steve DeLine was looking for some help. It was the fall of 1999, and the former CSU Rams place kicker turned real estate developer had just acquired an office building in the “Old Town” section of Fort Collins, and the building needed some work.

One office space in particular - where DeLine was going to set up shop himself - needed, among other things, a huge amount of plaster stripped off some old brick walls. As they say, it was a dirty job...

DeLine had always stayed close to the CSU football program following graduation. One of his friends was CSU assistant coach Tom Ehlers, who new of DeLine’s need for help, and offered a suggestion.

“He had this young kid, a freshman running back from Miami, who was going to be staying in Fort Collins over the Thanksgiving break, and needed something to do. He offered to help.”

That freshman’s name was Cecil Sapp. A player who would go on to do great things on the field for CSU started off by doing some nice work off of it.

“I handed him a hammer and a chisle, and showed him what to do,” DeLine said. “I figured it would take us a week or so to finish that job, but we came back after the three day break, and the job was finished. Cecil was covered in plaster at the end of every day.

“The thing I remember most was his attitude,” DeLine recalled. “He never complained or asked for anything more, and he really did a great job. He showed up early, and he stayed late. How many freshman football players would do that kind of work?”

Sapp, who would go on to become one of the best running backs to ever play in Fort Collins, had packed something special in the luggage he brought with him from south Florida. He brought a special kind of work ethic.

"My Dad was in landscaping,” Sapp recalled. “The way it was when I was growing up, when I would go to work with him, he expected me to do the best job I possibly could. No way could I get away with doing half the job. You would lose business. If you did a good job, someone might recommend you to somebody else.

“When I did the work for Steve, I figured since I was going to do it, why not go out and do a good job at it.”

Getting set to start his second season as a Denver Broncos running back, Sapp remembers that Thanksgiving, and what fueled him. It’s the same outlook that fuels everything he does while wearing predominately orange.

After spending all but one game of his rookie season on the Broncos practice squad, the undrafted free agent is now one of a handful of Broncos, old and new, who will be vying to fill the cleats of departed star Clinton Portis, who was traded to Washington in a well-documented off-season blockbuster deal. Besides Sapp, the Bronco roster includes holdovers Mike Anderson and Quentin Griffin, along with Rueben Droughans (who will probably remain at fullback). Throw in ‘03 draft choice Ahmaad Galloway, ‘04 free agent signee Garrison Hearst, and this year’s second round draft pick, Tatum Bell, and the backfield will really be in motion during Bronco Training Camp.

If you were to list these players in order of their likelihood of winning the starting job, Sapp’s name would be near the bottom of that list. Even Galloway, who has yet to play a down of pro football after suffering a serious knee injury during his final year at Alabama, is mentioned more often by local fans and media when discussing the vacant tailback position. The lack of recognition, which really started on NFL draft weekend in 2003, does not bother Sapp. Instead, it motivates him.

“As of right now, I just have to worry about what I have to do,” Sapp says, matter-of-factly. “I just have to go out there and prove myself when camp starts. I worked hard in the off season.”

Although his battle to make the active roster and see playing time in the backfield remains and an uphill one, Sapp is prepared. And he’s not without his supporters at Dove Valley. One Bronco insider calls Sapp’s “downhill” running style, “a perfect fit of this offense.” His strength has always been his ability to run between the tackles, and if he lacks blazing speed (he has been timed at 4.55 in the 40), he makes up for it with his ability to break tackles and gain yards after contact. Few local fans will forget his sensational seven-yard touchdown run at Invesco Field at the start of the 2002 season, when he broke seven different tackles and left much of the Colorado Buffaloes defense in his wake on his way to the end zone.

In fact, Sapp’s CSU career is crammed with highlight reel runs, going over, around and through opposing defenses. He was the MVP of the Liberty Bowl as a junior in 2000, rushing for 160 yards and a touchdown before missing the entire 2001 season with a foot injury that led to a redshirt year. He came back with a vengeance in 2002, starting with a dazzling 178-yard, two touchdown performance in the Rams upset win at Virginia, and carrying on right through the season. Sapp finished the year with 1,495 yards and 17 touchdowns, and a Mountain West Conference championship.

Still, after all that, and in-season projections that he could go as high as the third round of the draft, no call came on draft day.

“I felt disappointed (at not getting drafted),” Sapp admits, “But at the same time, you can sit there and be mad, but you’ve just got to go out there and play. I told myself if I wasn’t drafted, I was still going to go out there and be the best I could be and make somebody’s football club.”

It’s not very often that a player who went undrafted (after his standout senior season at CSU, Sapp missed the NFL Scouting Combine with a hamstring injury) even makes it this far. But Sapp was not a typical case. The Broncos, who had seen more of Sapp that other clubs in other time zones, signed him within ten minutes of the conclusion of the draft. A pleased Denver coach Mike Shanahan told media members at the time, "We had him ranked pretty high. I thought he was an excellent, excellent runner, especially an inside runner. I thought he'd fit in well with our scheme."

When Galloway and Griffin were stalled by injuries early in training camp less than three months later, Sapp got plenty of chances to impress during the pre-season games. He did, nearly making the final roster before getting cut on the final day. After he cleared waivers, Denver re-signed him quickly, and he landed on the practice squad. He spent most of the season impersonating enemy backs like LaDanian Tomlinson and Priest Holmes, before getting activated for the season finale in Green Bay. There, he picked up 31 yards on 12 carries in Denver’s loss to the Packers. The experience showed him that he has a lot of improving to do if he’s going to make the Denver roster full-time this season.

“I’ve got to step up my game about five notches at least,” confessed Sapp. “In the NFL, the game is all about speed,” he noted. “You’ve got to be fast to play in this league. I’ve been working on my speed and my strength, my quickness, so I can be a total force this year.”

Does the former Ram have a shot at stepping into the starting role in Denver?

“I’ve got a shot at it,” Sapp states. “I’m not going to doubt myself, because I know what type of ballplayer that I am. I’m the type of player that’s going to go out there and give all I can to help this team win as many games as we possibly can. Special teams, running back, all of it. Try to be a ball player.”

Being a ball player is certainly more appealing than being a landscaper or tearing plaster off of office walls. You can be sure that whatever the job is, Cecil Sapp will bring his working-man attitude to the job.