DYNAMIC DUO LEADS NITRO'S HIGH-OCTANE OFFENSE FULMER, CULBERTSON POISED FOR ASSAULT ON RECORD BOOKS
Publication: THE SUNDAY GAZETTE-MAIL
Published: 08/21/2005
Page: 15K
Headline: DYNAMIC DUO LEADS NITRO'S HIGH-OCTANE OFFENSE FULMER, CULBERTSON
POISED FOR ASSAULT ON RECORD BOOKS
Byline: JACK BOGACZYK
After cardiac and blood-flow problems that left him hospitalized for two weeks
last autumn, Nitro coach Scott Tinsley lost 60 pounds.
He's gained 24 of those back as he heads into his fourth season as the Wildcats'
coach, but where Nitro needs an advance in avoirdupois is in the offensive
line.
"We have such an abundance of skill guys who have had a lot of success
that I'm not worried about what we'll do if we can do what we want,"
Tinsley said. "What we need is to be able to do those things."
Nitro, seeking a third consecutive Class AAA playoff berth, has a pair of
seniors with state-record-setting potential in receiver Chris Fulmer and
running back Josh Culbertson. Those two, combined with the Wildcats' no-huddle,
hurry-up attack, allowed the team to go 9-3 last season despite injury woes.
However, 295-pound junior Chad Snodgrass, at strong-side guard,
is the lone returnee from the Wildcat 2004 offensive line. If Culbertson is
going to have running room and developing quarterback Michael Scott is to have
time to throw to Fulmer, Tinsley will need some meaty movement up front.
Tinsley liked the rapid rise in early practices by 205-pound sophomore Brandon
King, who will play the strong-side tackle. Junior Tyler Rader, a 6-foot-3,
240-pounder, seems set at center.
Still, Tinsley isn't quite sure what he will have until he sees it under game
conditions - and Friday night's opening visit to Musselman
begins a season in which the Wildcats play five of their first seven dates on
the road.
Scott, who got his feet wet as a freshman QB last season, may be primed for a
big year, thanks in part to the veteran presence of Fulmer and Culbertson.
"People won't believe how much [Scott] has improved from last year,"
Fulmer said.
The 6-0, 180-pound senior receiver, regarded as the state's top college
prospect by Rivals.com, enters 2005 with 244 career receptions for 3,507 yards
and 29 touchdowns.
He needs 56 catches to break the state career record of 299, set by former Nitro
star Chris Martin (1995-98) when J.R. House was pitching for the 'Cats. The
national record is in reach, too. Abram Booty had 302 during his 1993-96 career at Evangel Christian in
Fulmer had 66 receptions in 2004, but that was a down year for him (as Nitro
starting quarterback Mike Williams was injured) after 99 catches as a 2003
sophomore.
Culbertson, with 4,250 rushing yards after he carried the Wildcats to the
second round of the playoffs last season, needs 1,912 to break the state record
of 6,161, piled up by Weir's Quincy Wilson (1995-98) before he headed to
stardom at
Culbertson had 2,603 on a tiring 353 carries in 12 games last season.
"We need more balance offensively," said Tinsley, who may be the only
coach in the state who has two legitimate candidates for the Kennedy Award,
which goes to the state's top player. "We had that last year until Mike
Williams got hurt. Then we were about 90-10 run. We had to be.
"We can't accomplish what we want unless we can get the balance to about
60-40, one way or the other."
In Jordan Rusin (5-11, 180), who has moved from
corner to free safety, Tinsley said he has "as good a defensive back as
there is in the state, in my opinion." Rusin
will be the wideout opposite Fulmer, too.
Culbertson's twin, a 5-9, 180-pounder, isn't as big as his brother, but he's a
solid outside linebacker who "has more heart than anybody on this
team," his rushing brother said. Jon Culbertson and Gideon Casto (also a middle linebacker) are the slot receivers in
Nitro's four-wide set.
Tinsley, 22-11 in three Nitro seasons, also has two "different"
corners in 5-9, 160-pound junior Chris Kilpatrick, and 6-3, 215-pound junior
Jamie Hamrick, who transferred in with his twin, Hunter, from Herbert Hoover
High last fall.
Hunter Hamrick, a linebacker and lineman, hasn't practiced this month and
remains sidelined as he recovers from a torn quadriceps.