Lessons in Life with Kent Hull
A legend in the locker room

He’s blocked for many of football’s greats––Herschel Walker, Jim Kelly and Thurman Thomas––and he’s played in memorable games both on the collegiate and pro level. But as an offensive lineman he’d have a hard time being picked out of a lineup of sports superstars. And that’s just fine and dandy for Greenwood native Kent Hull. He’d rather enjoy his cattle and golf outings and quiet country life far away from the NFL’s bright lights.

By Mark H. Stowers

In his high school days in Greenwood, the lanky, skinny boy was more of a basketball player who happened to excel at football. “I got recruited as much for basketball as I did for football,” Hull says. “I had narrowed it down to Alabama, Ole Miss, Memphis State and Mississippi State in football and I had thought about playing at LSU or Mississippi State for basketball.” But the 18 year old looked at his abilities and tools and decided to put education first. “I said to myself, I’m 6’6” and 195 pounds and I’m a center. I’m not going to play anyway so I’m going to Mississippi State. And I guess I kept a lot of folks from getting mad at me,” says Hull.

So in the fall of 1979, the skinny center headed northwest to Starkville as the third string center. But as luck would have it, he didn’t stay there long. “We used to play some home games in Jackson and we were playing Florida,” he says. “I had a dip of Copenhagen and I’ve got my little helmet that doesn’t even have pads, just some straps in it, because they know a third string center isn’t going to play.” Before Hull could enjoy his dip, his number was called. “The first two centers got hurt and then they called for me,” he says. “I got the snuff out of my mouth and my helmet and went in. And to tell you the truth I don’t even remember the game.” With no time to think about his first collegiate snap, a bye week before a trip to Maryland gave Hull plenty of time to worry. “The first snap of the game, I took off and didn’t move the ball,” he says. “I didn’t even snap it.”

The four-year letterman never missed another start and helped anchor State teams under Emory Bellard that went to three bowl games. Coach Bellard enjoyed having a player the caliber of Hull. “He was a great, young man and a great football player from the word go,” Bellard says. “When we had two centers hurt, he had no choice but to step up to the top of the line.” Bellard and Hull shared in probably Mississippi State’s greatest win, the 1980 match up against number one Alabama. The Bulldogs put the only dent in the Tide’s loss column with a 6-3 nail biter win. Hull put the game far above any other he has ever competed in––even his four Super Bowl appearances. “I’ve never been in a more euphoric haze than I was after that game,” he says. “There were people celebrating even a week later. All week long we couldn’t get any sleep in the dorm because folks were driving by ringing cowbells and screaming our names. Its probably the greatest moment in my football career.” One moment in the game stuck out in Hull’s memory. “On fourth down and less than a yard for Alabama, they call a timeout and Johnnie Cooks walks over to their sideline by Bear Bryant,” Hull says. “Now Cooks is a piece a work and he says, ‘Coach Bryant, y’all number one in the nation. Go for it.’ And they did and didn’t make it and that’s what cost them the game.”

Paid to Block
Post-season bowl games and honors came Hull’s way but the NFL never called. But another stroke of luck did––the United States Football League (USFL). The upstart league was making plenty of noise and signing big name stars away from the NFL. Hull wasn’t one of those. “I was a seventh round draft pick for the New Jersey Generals,” he says. “I wasn’t big enough for the NFL to take a chance on to hold my rights.”

Hull’s world travels by that time only included the South and football games in Maryland and Kansas. And New Jersey definitely wasn’t Leflore County. “It was a rude awakening for this country boy,” he says. “I could see the stadium from where I lived but it took me an hour and a half to get there. It was a total culture shock to me but I learned a lot about life living there.” Even with the shock of living north of the Mason-Dixon Line, he explains that the USFL was a blessing. “I owe my whole career to the USFL,” Hulls says. “But I did find out real quick that when they pay you that check each week it’s different than being on a scholarship. They expect so much production and without that production, you could be gone.”

Even with the high expectations and cutthroat mentality of professional sports, Hull was able to make some life-long friends and create a family far away from the Delta. “I talk to Herschel Walker all the time—and Doug Flutie,” Hull says. “But the people who made the difference and had an impact on me were Jim LeClair, Brian Sipe and Dave Lapham. People like that directed us and molded us and taught us the dos and don’ts. There was plenty of trouble to get into out there.” And while Hull was learning his trade from veterans, he learned a few business skills from his second USFL owner, Donald Trump. “Herschel Walker and I went to Trump Tower in Manhattan one day,” he says, “and Trump was talking to Herschel and not even looking at me and he says, ‘Let me tell you something. Never spend your money. Spend somebody else’s.’ And now 20 years later it makes a lot of sense to me. He’s been making millions like that.” Hull’s USFL career ended after three years due to the league going under but not before he hooked up with his future best friend––a certain Hall of Fame quarterback from the famous draft class of 1983––Jim Kelly.

North Towards Home: Buffalo, New York
As a free agent, Hull was courted by no less than 11 NFL teams, but the ‘soon to be married’ center was looking to give one team, one shot. “I told my wife that I was going to give it one shot. If it doesn’t work, I’m coming home,” he says. “I don’t care about the money; I’m going somewhere where they need me.” Hull had plenty of suitors, but a blunt late night call and a stroke of luck put him in upstate New York. “I got a call at one in the morning from Buffalo Head Coach Hank Bulloch,” Hull recalls. “And he said, ‘Son, what’s your problem? We’ve made you an offer, what’s your problem?’ I didn’t know this but their starting center had just blown his knee out. And they wanted me to stay in Buffalo in the off-season and work out. So I told him I didn’t want to do that but if they took that money and put it in a signing bonus, we got a deal. He says, ‘Catch the next flight out.’”

Hull’s late night dealing not only netted him a contract but brought him to a ‘home away from home.’ “Buffalo is just like Mississippi, except it snows—every day,” he explains. “It was the greatest decision I ever made in my life. I called my wife and said ‘Hey, we’re rich now. I’ve got $10,000. They’re going to probably cut me next week, but it doesn’t matter, we’re rich. You stay down there in Mississippi.” Ten years later he finally came home, after retiring as one of the most decorated offensive lineman in the NFL.

But Hull’s arrival coincided with another Bill signing and he soon found out his ‘place’ on the team. “The next day they pick me up at the airport in the equipment van,” he recalls. “Like a painter’s van, no windows, no a/c. There are jocks, footballs, helmets, all that stuff. So I’m laying down on all this stuff and then I see all these banners out of the front of the van that say, ‘Welcome to Buffalo’ and I see helicopters and I’m thinking they must really want me. Then I figured out there was a limo in front of us. Jim Kelly had signed the same day I did. I thought, congratulations, you’re an offensive lineman in the National Football League.”

But the equipment van passenger and limo star became inseparable teammates with four Super Bowl appearances and so far, one Hall of Fame bust for Kelly and likely one for Hull one day. “He is one of my best friends,” Jim Kelly says emphatically. “He was the quarterback of the line, one of the best ever in the league and such a giving person.” Kelly couldn’t say enough about his teammate and hunting buddy. “Kent played with heart and he won because of his smarts.”

Teammates and coaches alike on each of his stops have praised Hull. Former Head Coach Marv Levy says, “Kent was the ultimate teammate and I loved coaching him. He could block 300 pounds of dynamite. Consistency was his long suit and he was as dependable a guy as you can imagine. He was always prepared. He had no ego and his teammates liked him. He was the best center in the league for quite a while.”

Hull remembers his former coach as an incredibly smart man. “In a team meeting he could speak to you on Monday and it would be Wednesday before you realized what he said,” Hull says. “He once said ‘Adversity is the opportunity for heroism.’ I just blew it off and then three days later I thought, He’s right. I know what he’s talking about.”

What The Cameras Missed
His fellow players regard Hull as a great teammate and he revealed a piece of that legend in the locker room after their first Super Bowl loss, a 20-19 defeat by the New York Giants. A last second 47-yard field goal attempt by Bills kicker Scott Norwood went wide right as time expired. “I’m getting ready to leave the locker room and there’s Scott Norwood sitting there, still in his uniform,” he says. “I went over there and said ‘take your stuff off and get over there in the shower.’ And he’s all upset. I said, ‘Scott, let me tell you something. Had I done my job better, that 47-yard field goal might have been a 33- or 37-yard field goal. Now you go get in the shower.’ And I waited till he got dressed and we left together.”

Hull called it a career in 1996 after playing in 121 straight games, seven seasons as captain, three Pro Bowl appearances and four Super Bowls. Far from the bright lights of the NFL, Kent and Kay now enjoy their peaceful ranch in Vaiden with their 300 cattle. When asked what advice he’d give to athletes today, Hull broadens the spectrum. “Anybody who aspires to do anything, a bio-chemist, a NFL player, or soccer player in Spain––go for it. Go for it wide open. But every opportunity you get to improve yourself, you do it. There are dope dealers that could have been better centers than I was. But they didn’t take advantage of the opportunity. When I got one, I jumped through it wide open. Be ready, so you can make the most of your opportunity.” DM