Halfback, Chicago
Bears
Age: 22
College: Baylor
Height: 6’0” Weight: 200
Prelude:
An
all-purpose star in college, where he gained 1990 yards from scrimmage, Bull
was taken by the Bears in the first round of the 1962 NFL draft (seventh overall;
he was also chosen third overall by the Dallas Texans of the AFL). With veteran
Willie Galimore a fixture at halfback, Bull started the season as a defensive
back and saw scant action, but was shifted to offense when Galimore went down
with a knee injury.
1962 Season Summary
Appeared in all
14 games
[Bracketed
numbers indicate league rank in Top 20]
Rushing
Attempts – 113
[19, tied with Tom Watkins]
Most
attempts, game - 18 (for 72 yds.) vs. LA Rams 12/9
Yards – 363
Most yards,
game – 72 yards (on 18 carries) vs. LA Rams 12/9
Average gain
– 3.2
TDs – 1
Pass
Receiving
Receptions – 31
Most
receptions, game – 6 (for 90 yds.) at Dallas 11/18
Yards – 331
Most yards,
game - 90 (on 6 catches) at Dallas 11/18
Average gain
– 10.7
TDs – 0
Kickoff Returns
Returns – 9
Yards – 235
Average per
return – 26.1
TDs – 0
Longest
return – 35 yards
All-Purpose
yards – 929
Passing
Attempts – 3
Completions –
0
Yards – 0
TDs – 0
INT – 0
Scoring
TDs – 1
Points – 6
Awards & Honors:
NFL Rookie of
the Year: UPI, Sporting News
Bears went 9-5
to finish third in the NFL Western Conference.
Aftermath:
Bull followed
up in 1963 by splitting time with Galimore and rushing for 404 yards on a
career-high 117 carries while the defense carried the Bears to the NFL Championship.
The arrival of HB Jon Arnett from the Rams cut into Bull’s playing time in ’64,
and with outstanding HB Gale Sayers joining the team in 1965, he was used more
at fullback. So it remained through 1970, a total of nine seasons with the
Bears, as Bull split time with other backs. He lacked ideal speed at halfback
and, with his blocking ability, was more successful at fullback, although he was
small for the position. His highest rushing total was 472 yards, on 107
attempts, in 1968 when he played in tandem with HB Brian Piccolo after Sayers
went down with a knee injury. Bull was with the Eagles for one last season in
1971, where he led the club in rushing but with just 351 yards. Overall, he ran
for 3222 yards (2871 with the Bears) while averaging 3.7 yards per carry and
caught 172 passes for 1479 yards (163 for 1404 in Chicago), scoring a total of
14 touchdowns.
--
Rookie of the Year Profiles feature players who were named Rookie
of the Year in the NFL, AFL (1960-69), or USFL (1983-85) by a recognized
organization (Associated Press – Offense or Defense, Newspaper Enterprise
Association, United Press International, The Sporting News, or the league
itself – Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year).
