Tommy Fuller, a 5-foot-10, 185-pound safety from Eden Prairie (MN) High, is a preferred walk-on at Minnesota.
Fuller helped lead the Eagles to an 11-2 mark as a senior, losing to Totino-Grace in the Prep Bowl title game 28-20.
Fuller runs a 4.54 forty yard dash and 4.14 shuttle. He has a 36.7 inch vertical and squats 455 pounds and cleans 285 pounds.
Gopher Hole recently caught up with him to learn more about his decision.
Gopher Hole: You recently committed to Minnesota as a preferred walk-on. What was the main reason you decided Minnesota was where you wanted to be?
Tommy Fuller: Just because Minnesota has always been the place that I wanted to go since I was a kid. It is a great school and the coaching staff with all the energy they bring made me feel even better.
Gopher Hole: When did you first start talking to Minnesota about being a possible walk-on?
Tommy Fuller: I want to say about two weeks ago. It wasn’t very long ago.
Gopher Hole: Had you heard much from the previous staff or was it mostly the new staff?
Tommy Fuller: It was the new staff.
Gopher Hole: What other schools were you hearing from besides Minnesota?
Tommy Fuller: I had a PWO (preferred walk-on) from Iowa State and offers from Concordia St. Paul and Bemidji.
Gopher Hole: How hard was it to say no to money from those two schools to walk-on?
Tommy Fuller: I think it was a no-brainer to get to walk-on at Minnesota because that is always wanted to do. It is Big Ten football. I also get to play with Carter (Coughlin) and Blake (Cashman) again. It will be awesome to play with Danny (Anderson), who is another Eden Prairie preferred walk-on. It was kind of a no-brainer for me.
Gopher Hole: You mentioned Danny. Had you talked to him much throughout the process. I know that he had mentioned to me about you two going down to Iowa State for a visit?
Tommy Fuller: We are basically best friends. We talked about it like every day. We talked about what we wanted to do. We work really well together, so I think we always wanted to end up together somewhere at a university, so this works out great.
Gopher Hole: You mentioned a couple of former Eden Prairie teammates of the defensive side in Carter Coughlin and Blake Cashman. Had you talked to them much before you made your decision about Minnesota?
Tommy Fuller: Yes. I actually talked to Blake a lot about the preferred walk-on process. He is treated the same way and loved it and said it was a great experience from him and that I would love it, too, so it kind of gave me the confidence to do it too.
Gopher Hole: Obviously, he has a really good year this past season. He was named the Holiday Bowl Defensive MVP and will likely be on scholarship this season after playing so well. Is that something that you have looked at and would like to emulate?
Tommy Fuller: Yes. He is a role model for me. To see him be so successful like that is something that I have always wanted to do. Earn my way onto the field and get a scholarship.
Gopher Hole: I am sure that every school like Iowa State and Minnesota uses former walk-ons who earn scholarships and become important players as examples when recruiting kids. Is that nice that you actually know the kid who did it here rather than hear a story about someone else. Does that make it seem more real in a way?
Tommy Fuller: Yes, because you can also talk to him about how he went through the process and then take your own way through it.
Gopher Hole: Your senior season, your team finished 11-2, losing to Totino-Grace in the Prep Bowl 28-20. You came a little bit short of where you wanted to be, but how pleased were you with the success you had this past season?
Tommy Fuller: There was a lot of doubt going into this season, but I was really happy with how hard we played and we had one of the best defenses in Eden Prairie history. I had an amazing season with my brothers and you couldn’t ask for anything more other than that championship. Sometimes it doesn’t work out. Totino played great.
.
Gopher Hole: How pleased were you with some of the individual success you had this year?
Tommy Fuller: The offseason work, I can see really paid off a lot. I’m really happy with how I played this year.
Gopher Hole: You played mostly safety in high school. What have the coaches said about a position you would play in college?
Tommy Fuller: Not yet, but wherever they need me or can use me, I can play,
Gopher Hole: Do you play any other sports anymore?
Tommy Fuller: I play Lacrosse.
Gopher Hole: Obviously, Lacrosse has some comparisons with football in terms of foot work. Do you think that helps you as a football player?
Tommy Fuller: Yes, because I play defense in that, too. I think it helps you a lot with the contact and the foot work as well and also the conditioning aspect. It keeps me in shape since you are always running.
Gopher Hole: Are you definitely going to play this season?
Tommy Fuller: Yes. I think I’ll play and we’ll see how it works out.
Gopher Hole: What things are you going to be to get ready to report to camp in June?
Tommy Fuller: I have been doing a lot of speed work and explosive weight lifting. Trying to get as conditioned as I can.
Gopher Hole: You just recently committed to Minnesota as a preferred walk-on, but what has your relationship been like with the new coaching staff so far?
Tommy Fuller: I had some one-on-one conversations with Matt Simon (wide receiver coach) at the basketball game. Based on that conversation, I could tell that they really care about their players and they want to bring back Minnesota players to Minnesota in building their program.
Gopher Hole: Coach Fleck seems have a lot of kids excited about Minnesota. Does that make you more excited, too since others are excited about playing at Minnesota?
Tommy Fuller: Oh, yes. It makes me super excited. I can’t wait to show up for camp.