Sep 10, 2016; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego State Aztecs running back Donnel Pumphrey (19) runs the ball against the California Golden Bears during the third quarter at Qualcomm Stadium. Photo Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
Marshall Faulk is easily the most famous football player in San Diego State history.
But he’s no longer the school’s all-time leading rusher.
The legendary Faulk saw his record go down late Saturday night when Aztecs senior Donnel Pumphrey surpassed him with a career-best 281-yard performance in San Diego State’s 45-40 victory over California.
Pumphrey raised his career total to 4,651 yards. Faulk gained 4,589 from 1991-93 before embarking on a Hall of Fame NFL career.
“I think it’s great,” San Diego State coach Rocky Long said after Saturday’s game. “We all knew it was going to happen. I think any time you do something that unique with a player that good it’s something special. I’ll tell you who is really happy — his offensive line.”
Pumphrey scored three touchdowns to help the Aztecs win their 12th consecutive game dating back to last season. The 281-yard effort was fifth highest in San Diego State history and it was the 23rd 100-yard game of his career — which ties a school mark held by Faulk.
Being mentioned alongside Faulk has been a surreal occurrence for Pumphrey, who declined to leave school early for the NFL after being Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year last season.
“This is definitely a major memory for me, just to be able to do this with my teammates, my family here, coaching staff and athletic department here, it’s just unreal,” Pumphrey said. “Now that I have passed it we can move on. It’s just victories we are just worried about right now.”
Faulk broke on to the scene in 1991 and set the NCAA single-game rushing record of 386 yards and scored seven touchdowns in his second career game. He rushed for 1,429 yards and finished ninth in the Heisman Trophy balloting as a freshman.
As a sophomore, Faulk was runner-up for the Heisman Trophy when he gained 1,630 yards and 15 touchdowns despite missing most of the final two games. He rushed for 1,530 yards and 21 touchdowns as a junior and finished fourth in the Heisman race before departing for the NFL and being the second overall pick by the Indianapolis Colts.
