Ben Lepper ’25
Chief Sports Editor
From 1987 to 1990, the Holy Cross Crusaders had Joe Segreti. Upon taking over the starting job in 1988, he immediately set the single-season rushing touchdown record, reaching the endzone 16 times. And, by the end of his collegiate career, he had set the school’s all-time rushing touchdown record, with a staggering 37 scores in four years. He was a monster in the backfield, and those records proved it, with them standing untouched for 30 years.
At least, they were untouched – up until Jordan Fuller arrived on Mount St. James.
The New Hampshire product has Holy Cross football in his blood – his father is Jerome Fuller, another legendary rusher from those dangerous teams of the 1990s who owns the current single-season record for rushing yards, which was the only record that Jordan had in his mind for a while. In fact, he never really cared about records.
“The only record I knew about coming into HC was my dad’s,” Fuller told The Spire, “so naturally that was the one that was constantly brought up to me around the time of my commitment. I’ve honestly never been too worried about the records, mostly because the culture of our team is just so centered around winning and adding value to the team.”
In his first three years, Fuller has certainly added immense value to the Crusader offense. With his aggressive, physical rushing style, he acted as a change-of-pace back and goalline specialist throughout his first two years, but began to sniff out a feature role near the end of his sophomore year. By his junior year, he was the starter.
However, as he has gained more and more playing time, his team-first mindset has stayed the same. “Having a great game in a loss has never made me feel good about myself,” said Fuller, “because at the end of the day Holy Cross football is about winning championships, and that has been the standard for almost 100 years. I believe that the best way to achieve personal success is to strive for team success. When you want the team to achieve as much as possible, you will do things that you wouldn’t do if you were just focused on personal goals, but those team-focused actions ultimately will lead to personal success and growth.”
He’s certainly achieved both team and personal success. After scoring five touchdowns in the 2023 season opener against Merrimack, Fuller continued his torrid scoring pace as the offense continued to put up dazzling numbers every week. Of course, he couldn’t do it alone, and he credits the offensive line with a lot of his success.
“I truly believe they are the best OL in the country,” said Fuller, “and they rarely get the praise they deserve. The skill players will be the ones putting up great numbers, but it’s all because of the selfless guys up front. So many people can help drive the success of an individual, so when I get notoriety in any light, I just think about the people who have contributed in such meaningful ways.”
Aided by his offensive line, Fuller put up mind-boggling numbers week after week, and in this season’s edition of the Ram-Crusader Cup, he scored his 38th career touchdown, breaking Segreti’s all-time record in only three years of play. A week later, he scored his 17th rushing touchdown of the season on a 53-yard house call against Lehigh, breaking Segreti’s single-season record (he would score a second later in the game, too). Keep in mind that there are still two games left in the season, and that Fuller is only a junior. Those records weren’t just broken; they were shattered.
When asked about who helped him develop as a runner, his response started, of course, with his HC hall-of-famer dad. “My dad certainly started my development as a player, and although he has backed off and kind of let me figure it out in recent years, he introduced me to this sport and set the standard of how I should approach the game at a very young age. Ultimately I started trying to be as good as possible to make him proud and I carry that mentality with me whenever I’m training or playing.”
Fuller also cites his coach from his high school days at Governor’s Academy as a major factor in his development, and of course, he credits the Holy Cross coaching staff. “Coach Chesney has instilled the mentality in me to just try to dominate everything I do, on and off the field. He has made it cool to just be uber-focused in everything you do, and that has certainly worn off on me and my teammates.”
In his three years here, Fuller has embraced and been embraced by a team and a community that has his back no matter what, and he’s been able to shatter records that have stood the test of time thanks in part to that. And while he does love being able to make an impact playing the game he’s loved since he was seven years old, he also loves being just another student on this campus.
“I love that at Holy Cross you are able to fully pursue life outside of football while also playing for an elite program,” said Fuller. “It’s cool to be known as an athlete but the moments I cherish most are when I get to know people on or off the team on a personal level and separate from this sport which has become such a big part of my identity.”
And, of course, the records are great. But, as previously mentioned, Fuller’s not here to break records: he’s here to win.
“The coaches, alumni, students, and entire Holy Cross fanbase care about wins,” said Fuller, “and that’s what we’re all here to do.”
Featured image courtesy of Holy Cross Athletics.
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