Full-bore at fullback: Purvin powered Lemont
There were many excellent running backs in the Joliet area during the 2000 high school football season.
Joliet Catholic Academy's J.R. Zwierzynski topped the 2,000-yard barrier with 2,073 yards. He was followed by outstanding players like Providence Catholic's Mike Mentz (1,777 yards), Plainfield's Jake Shields (1,621), Joliet Township's Trenell Mance (1,365) and JCA's Chris Gruber (1,131).
And the sixth-leading rusher in the area in 2000 -- Lemont's Steve Purvin -- was a bulldozer of a fullback. Purvin was a runner who was difficult to bring down, especially for a defender during one-on-one confrontations.
Purvin was the area's other runner to break the 1,000-yard mark eight seasons ago. He gained 1,010 yards, averaged 5.1 yards per carry and scored 7 touchdowns.
The 5-foot-9 Purvin, who played high school ball at about 220 pounds, did that in nine games, five fewer than Zwierzynski, Mentz and Gruber, and three less than Shields.
"I guess you could say I was a slower version of Mike Alstott," Purvin laughed, referring to the former JCA all-stater who starred for Purdue and then Tampa Bay in the NFL. "I definitely wasn't going to be brought down easily by any tackler. That was not how I played. That wasn't my game.
"I didn't avoid contact, that's for sure. I liked that aspect of the sport. That's one of the great things about football. Football really is a beautiful game. I tried to play as hard as I could every down of every game and practice."
A three-year regular for Lemont, Purvin started at right tackle on the varsity as a sophomore in 1998. As a junior, he was the starting fullback and was a regular at defensive tackle. Then his senior year, he made his mark at fullback. He also saw considerable playing time at defensive end and played on special teams.
"It didn't matter what the weather conditions were or anything, either. How can you not enjoy playing football?"
Lemont, which was coached by Jim Driscoll at the time, reached the Class 4A playoffs in 2000. The Indians finished 6-3 in the regular season.
Dan Morand quarterbacked Lemont that season, while Jacob Sineni and Purvin were the main running backs. Sam Gargano and Tom Trijuillo were hard-hitting linebackers. At 6-5, 230 pounds, lineman Mike Suduit was one of Lemont's biggest players.
Although they may not have known it at the time, the 2000 qualifier helped lay the foundation for future Lemont teams.
"We had some talented kids on the 2000 team and we knew some success when we played for the Lemont Hornets youth team when we were younger," said Purvin, a two-time Suburban Prairie White all-conference player. "We tried our best and got it going, I think.
"To be totally honest, I'd like to think that those players and myself from the 2000 team were a part of all this. I don't know if anyone remembers my name, but that's OK."
Lemont was eliminated in the opening round of the 2000 playoffs, falling 54-7 to Pontiac.
One of Purvin's top high school games came against Yorkville his senior year. He carried the ball 38 times for 240 yards and 2 touchdowns.
"One of those touchdowns against Yorkville was a 64-yarder," Purvin said. "That was one of the longest runs for a touchdown I ever had. You bet I was going to make the end zone on that run."
Purvin's younger brother, Jimmy, is a junior starter at right offensive tackle for the current unbeaten Indians. Jimmy is 5-11, 230 pounds.
"I look at the size of the guys on this Lemont team, and players like Graham Pocic from last year, and they are so much bigger than we were," Steve Purvin said. "Size-wise, there's no comparison."
Lemont varsity coach Eric Michaelsen, a sophomore coach when Steve played, knows the value of a Purvin on any football team.
Bobby Purvin, the middle of the three Purvin sons, also played for Lemont.
"I sure do love having a Purvin on my team," Michaelsen said. "Not only do they possess the desire and proper mentality to play football, but you know what you're going to get from them regardless of the situation.
"I don't care if the temperature is 100 degrees, there's 10 inches of snow on the ground, or a downpour, you know that won't affect how the Purvins play. Their work ethic was undeniable all the time."
Michaelsen told of a story during Steve's senior season.
"I can remember when Steve hurt his hand pretty badly midway through the 2000 season," Michaelsen said. "I think it may have been the sixth or seventh game.
"That type of injury could have put many players out for the remainder of the season. But Steve wanted to play so badly that he missed only one game, came back and helped get us into the playoffs. Steve was all about helping the team, not personal statistics of individual awards."
Tom Purvin, Steve's father, has long been a driving force in developing the Lemont Hornets youth teams into a successful overall program.
Tom Purvin, a starting free safety at Eastern Illinois University, was very instrumental in his son's development as a total football player.
"Dad's a very motivated type of person," said Steve, who works as a trainer at Bally's Total Fitness in Minneapolis-St. Paul. "He did a lot for me. I owe him so much for what he did.
"I know there were times, like most any player has, when I may have wanted to throw in the towel. But dad was always there for me. He'd give me the boot if I needed it, but he loved me and that meant so much. We always had so much fun and learned so much when he coached those Hornets teams."
The 25-year-old Purvin works out every day and weighs 208 pounds. He never minded playing fullback, nor blocking bigger linemen.
"I loved playing fullback," he said. "Not many fans remember any great fullback. Everyone remembers the quarterbacks, tailbacks or the fast wide receiver who caught 100 passes.
"As a fullback, my first job was to clear a running hole for our runners. It just so happened that I had some success doing that."
And a Purvin success story continues at Lemont even today.
