Once upon a time Marcus Dupree was the most coveted high school football recruit in the country. How desired was he as a player? Dupree says one school offered him $250,000 a year to play for them, while another program offered him an oil well. Yes, an oil well.
For those who forgot about Dupree or did not know of him, his story was retold in an ESPN 30 for 30’s documentary entitled, “The Best That Never Was.” A big, fast and powerful running back from Mississippi, Dupree went to Oklahoma where he showcased his talent for a little more than a season. But Dupree clashed with Barry Switzer and left the program during his second year at school. He eventually signed to play in the USFL, injured his knee, and was never the same.
Well Dupree joined “Highly Questionable” on ESPN Wednesday and was asked by host Dan Le Batard about the craziest thing he was offered during his highly-publicized recruitment. The answers were phenomenal.
“I got offered $250,000 a year to play at this certain college. My mom grabbed me quickly by the head and said you can’t take this money.”
Dupree explained that his mother was a schoolteacher and had a moral conscious about breaking the rules that way. She wanted her son to earn his money without anyone holding something over him.
“I got offered some oil wells,” Dupree also revealed.
And here you were thinking that this was an outrageous gift offered to a college quarterback? Yeah, Dupree was offered a million bucks and an oil well. Beat that!
Photo: Marcus Dupree/Twitter
