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Friday, October 20, 2000

Hawaii’s ‘Fu’
carrying big load
in Pittsburgh

Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala of
Hawaii is showing his versatility
for the Steelers

---

By Pat Bigold
Star-Bulletin

It's what Pittsburgh head coach Bill Cowher had in mind when he drafted Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala in the sixth round in 1998.

A one-two punch of "The Bus," Jerome Bettis, and the 5-foot-11, 250-pound back they called "The Truck" at the University of Utah.

Three seasons and several hamstring injuries later, Fuamatu-Ma'afala is finally teaming with Bettis as the No. 2 running back to spark a Steelers revival that has the city in a tizzy.

With those two pounding out yardage, Pittsburgh has rallied from an 0-3 record to 3-3. This weekend the Steelers could go over .500 when they host Cleveland (2-5).

The Steelers have won five AFC titles and made six playoff appearances under Cowher, but the past two seasons have been forgettable.

Suddenly, there's a sense that Cowher has come up with a winning combination, and it couldn't have come at a better time for Fuamatu-Ma'afala, the former St. Louis School all-stater.

He becomes a free agent at the end of this season.

Having missed six games in 1999 and rushed only once for 4 yards, Fuamatu-Ma'afala needed a solid season to make himself more marketable.

He's not only doing that, but he has a chance to prove himself one of the most versatile backs in the game.

After not touching the ball in Pittsburgh's season-opening 16-0 loss to Baltimore, he has 129 rushing yards on 20 carries (6.5 average) and 107 yards on 11 receptions (9.7 average).

He's also played a notch above average on special teams.

But this week, Fuamatu-Ma'afala will have to add fullback to his repertoire.

Steelers running back coach Dick Hoke told the Star-Bulletin yesterday that Fuamatu-Ma'afala will start at fullback in place of regular Jon Witman, who broke his leg last Sunday against Cincinnati.

Fuamatu-Ma'afala said he has never played a full game at fullback in high school, college or the NFL.

"I'd rather be a halfback, but if they put me at fullback, I'll get the job done," he said.

With Bettis only 14 yards shy of 9,000 career yards, his blocks will take on extra meaning.

Hoke said Fuamatu-Ma'afala will continue to be the third-down running back and play special teams.

Asked if he thought Fuamatu-Ma'afala had the stamina to do all that, he said, "Oh yes, I'm sure he does."

Hoke said No. 3 back Richard Huntley can occasionally spell Fuamatu-Ma'afala.

"He's (Fuamatu-Ma'afala) made his best rushing yardage on the draw and he ain't easy to bring down," said Myron Cope, the legendary color commentator for Steeler radio broadcasts and inventor of the "Terrible Towel."

His 5-yard touchdown run at Jacksonville and two critical third-down conversions on pass plays in an upset of the New York Jets at the Meadowlands two weekends ago raised Fuamatu-Ma'afala's popularity in Pittsburgh to a level that makes the modest, soft-spoken Kalihi native uncomfortable.

"I can't believe it," he said. "It's exploded. But I just stay away from that. I just go out and play ball. It's good to be noticed. But I don't ever want to get caught up in that. Even when I'm done with it."

Cope said he thinks the player he dubbed, "Fu," in his rookie season, is already better than a lot of the starting running backs in the league. And he thinks his future in Pittsburgh is solid, if he decides to stay.

With Bettis' contract also up this year, there's speculation in Pittsburgh that the Steelers might want to dump his expensive contract and turn to Fuamatu-Ma'afala as the go-to guy in 2001.

Because of his pass-catching ability and knack for crunching extra yards after the reception, he's proved himself a double threat on offense. Bettis has four receptions for 27 yards to go along with his 422 yards on 105 carries (five touchdowns).

Cowher has often referred to Fuamatu-Ma'afala's work ethic. He continues to play at high-intensity on special teams with two solo tackles to his credit in the last four games.

"I'm still winded by the time our offense is on the field and it comes to third down," said Fuamatu-Ma'afala. "But I don't mind."

Pittsburgh fans used to preening, posing and motor-mouthing by pro athletes have seen in "Fu" the refreshing enthusiasm of a high school player.

After Fuamatu-Ma'afala executed a long run against Jacksonville, Cowher ran up to him on the sidelines and yelled, "Great run," in his face.

Fuamatu-Ma'afala responded by pounding Cowher hard on the chest.

"I did it like guys do to each other on the field," said Fuamatu-Ma'afala, "because Coach Cowher is like one of the guys."

Fuamatu-Ma'afala raised Pittsburgh's level of fascination with him two weeks ago when he accepted an invitation to be on the "Jerome Bettis Show" on KDKA-TV with teammate Kimo von Oelhoffen, the Molokai native who plays nose tackle.

Asked to perform the Samoan fire-knife dance, something he's never done before an audience, Fuamatu-Ma'afala agreed as long as it was without fire.

"I'm no professional but I know the basics," said Fuamatu-Ma'afala. "I did OK but that's because people over here (Pittsburgh) don't know the real way Samoans spin the knife."