Brian Manzullo

Some consider it the classic football story.

One man starts the season as the starting quarterback. When he falls early, the next man steps in and takes over for good, calling the signals and guiding the team to glory.

People all over the country know junior quarterback Dan LeFevour as the man who sent CMU to the top of its conference. Many forget the man who, before LeFevour, had the chance to live his dream – someone who would live it today if the past played out any differently.

But Brian Brunner prefers not to think of it that way. The senior who was once Wisconsin’s top prep quarterback and CMU’s starting signal-caller in 2006 entered a new stage in his life when the previous stage fell grim.

He kept his smile showing and his attitude upbeat, refusing to let his past adversely affect his future. That’s just Brunner.

He now finds himself outpacing other students in the classroom. He challenges himself as a volunteer in the community. He establishes himself as a team leader, as a mentor and as a competitor.

He is a man that refuses to stay forgotten.

LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON

Brunner fancied himself a quarterback since he was in second grade, playing football at the local playground during his early years in Milwaukee.

“I had the opportunity to dictate control of the game,” he said. “I always wanted the ball in my hands – I got to decide how the game is going to go. That mentality has carried me throughout my career.”

He looked up to his father and high school coach, Dan Brunner, a lot while growing up in Milwaukee and later in Hubertus, Wisc.

And for good reason – Dan Brunner was an All-American tight end at Div. III Wisconsin-Whitewater in the mid-1970s and even participated in training camp with the Green Bay Packers. His career ended early because of a dislocated kneecap in a semipro all-star game.

Dan would tell his son, from experience, that playing for the National Football League is a dream – that while he had the ability to compete, no one could really count on playing football as a career.

“That’s the stuff I always told him,” Dan Brunner said. “Brian’s such a mature individual and always has been, and I stressed him to try not to be anybody else other than the person he is. I told him to play within himself.”

Brian worked his way to becoming a four-year starter at Hartford Union and playing for his father.

He was considered the top quarterback of Wisconsin after his senior season in 2003, throwing for 1,744 yards and 17 touchdowns. He was named first-team all-state by the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Several Mid-American Conference schools, including Western Michigan, Ball State and Northern Illinois, expressed interest in Brian. But it was then-offensive coordinator Butch Jones and Central Michigan that won him over from the start.

“They were the first ones in on me,” he said. “That’s the impression I got from Butch and (then-coach Mike) DeBord – they were going to be honest with me and care about me. So I never really had second thoughts.”

Brunner redshirted in 2004, when coach Brian Kelly took over the program, before backing up senior Kent Smith in 2005. He saw his first collegiate action at Penn State, completing both of his passes for 15 yards in a 40-3 loss.

Once CMU finished its first winning season since 1998, Brunner’s next goal was in reach – a chance to start for the rising Chippewas.

RISING IN THE RANKS

It was a three-quarterback battle for the starting position in the spring of 2006, with Brunner, a redshirt sophomore, and redshirt freshmen Dan LeFevour and Duane Brooks vying for playing time.

Brunner had the upper hand, mainly because he worked with the offense and saw playing time in 2005 as a backup to Kent Smith.

“I felt pretty confident I had the position locked down,” he said. “From there, it was about taking my role as a quarterback to the next step and be a true leader for the football team.”

Friendly competition between the three continued through training camp.

Although coach Brian Kelly repeatedly said he would give playing time to all three quaterbacks, he named Brunner the starter a week prior to the season opener against Boston College.

What was once a dream to the young quarterback finally began to materialize.

“It meant a lot to me to come out ahead,” Brunner said. “I was ready to lead.”

THE INJURY

Walking into Kelly/Shorts Stadium on Aug. 31, 2006, was a surreal feeling for Brunner. CMU was bringing in Boston College, an Atlantic Coast Conference team, something previously unheard of in Mount Pleasant.

More than 25,000 fans poured into the stadium. The ESPN crew, which included former NFL quarterback Doug Flutie, came into town. A couple of Brunner’s friends gave him his own cheering section, calling themselves “Brunner’s Brew Crew.”

“That got me pumped,” he said. “I had my cheering section in the end zone and everything. I was ready to take this thing over.”

But Brunner would not attempt a single pass. On second-and-10 during his first possession, he dropped back on a four-vertical play, eluded the pass rush and scrambled ahead, seeing linebacker Jolonn Dunbar straight ahead.

Brunner remembered running over linebackers in high school, thinking it wouldn’t be much different trying to plow an ACC linebacker.

“I remember lowering my shoulder and taking the hit,” he said. “Next thing I know, I’m trying to figure out where I was. I couldn’t get my head off the turf.”

It was a severe concussion that knocked Brunner out of the game.

Then Central got its first glimpse of LeFevour. He electrified the Kelly/Shorts crowd with his mix of passing and rushing, almost leading the team to a comeback win in his first appearance.

LeFevour would start the next two games as Brunner recovered, losing to Michigan 41-17 and beating Akron 24-21. But the following week, at Eastern Michigan, he suffered back spasms, which put Brunner back in the huddle late in the first quarter.

“It was my turn to fight again and prove my stock,” he said.

Brunner finished 20-for-29 for 214 yards and one touchdown, along with 11 rushes for 72 yards and two touchdowns, to lead CMU past Eastern 24-17 in overtime. He was named MAC West Offensive Player of the Week.

Although Brunner would have liked to open against Boston College with that performance, he took it.

“That’s as good of a next opening performance I could have,” he said. “I remember thinking, ‘I got my spot back, let’s roll from here.’”

A FALL FROM GLORY

Brunner said Lemony Snicket couldn’t have written the following week any better himself – “a series of unfortunate events,” he called it.

Kelly indicated prior to CMU’s Sept. 30, 2006, trip to Kentucky that he’d “rather have one quarterback” going into the rest of the team’s MAC schedule. Brunner knew he had to follow up his superb performance.

But the game went downhill from the start. Two fumbles, one botched trick play and one failed fourth-down conversion later and the Chippewas were down early, 21-0 to the Wildcats, prompting Kelly to make a move.

LeFevour came in and sparked a CMU comeback that came up just short, 45-36. He finished with 360 passing yards and four touchdowns. The starting spot was his.

“It was like, ‘OK that’s the end of my career as a starter,’ ever since,” Brunner said. “It was a devastating trip back … one of the lowest points of my college career.”

LeFevour finished 8-1 the rest of the season as the starter, guiding CMU to its first MAC Championship since 1994 and to its first-ever Division I bowl win at the Motor City Bowl in Detroit.

While Brunner settled on his role as No. 2, he said he “internalized” a little bit the rest of the semester – he shut himself off from people he cared about and tried to deal with the situation himself.

“That wasn’t the best way to go about things,” he said. “You need people to support you.”

Brunner thought about transferring to another school for a chance to compete – an idea his parents discussed with him. But he didn’t even have a thought of another school, and in his decision to stay, Brunner’s academics and social life prevailed.

A NEW DIRECTION

Brunner called 2007 an interesting year. As a redshirt junior, he had to settle into his backup spot, now playing under coach Butch Jones, looking for different ways to grow as a team player.

He developed a good relationship with the second team, establishing himself as an anchor for the younger players. He also played a role in LeFevour’s growth as a veteran quarterback.

“I’ll watch film, or come off the field, and he can point things out and tell me what I’m doing wrong,” LeFevour said.

In the meantime, though, Brunner needed another outlet for his competitive drive. He tried playing as a tight end in spring practice, but moved back to quarterback for depth reasons. He looked off the field instead.

“If I can’t win on the field, I’m going to try my best to be the best student I can possibly be,” he said, “and compete against other people in the classroom.”

That, he has. Brunner maintains a 3.89 grade point average as a journalism major, was named Academic All-MAC and is involved with the CMU Student-Athlete Advisory Board and the football program’s Leadership Council, among others.

Brunner completed a scouting internship with the Green Bay Packers in the summer of 2007 and works as a staff reporter at Central Michigan Life during the offseason.

“The kid’s a bookworm,” said senior offensive tackle Greg Wojt, who roomed with Brunner the last five years. “I learn a lot from him – whenever I have a question about something, I ask him. He can do anything.”

‘A TRUE STUDENT ATHLETE’

Brunner went from feeling dejected, losing the chance to lead CMU on fall Saturdays, to becoming one of Central’s most respected athletes and recognizable backup players while playing just a few snaps per season.

“He’s turned a situation that would’ve destroyed a lot of people into such a positive experience for himself,” Dan Brunner said. “When you talk about somebody who you’d like to be the face of CMU in athletics, there’s a guy who you’d want pictured somewhere.”

Jones often talks to Brian Brunner about becoming the President of the United States one day, he said with a laugh.

“He’s what we want in our football players,” Jones said. “He always demands excellence from himself. He’s what you call a true student athlete.

“Our players view him as a team leader. That speaks volumes about him.”

With the end of his college career on the horizon, Brian Brunner is not sure what lies ahead. He talked about traveling, becoming a media writer or even coaching a team.

But he feels there still is unfinished business at Central.

“I want people to remember who Brian Brunner was,” he said, cracking a smile. “Not just a decent football player who had a tough break and is now a backup. No, he’s a guy that did a lot for this program and left a mark on this football team.”

A plaque is mounted on the wall in the Rose Center. It’s for Boyden Award recipients – senior student-athletes who commit themselves to athletics, volunteerism, campus leadership and academics.

It’s only fitting that Brunner’s name will sit on this wall upon his departure in May.

bmanzullo@cm-life.com

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