Senior fullback Trevon Pendleton runs the ball to the one yard line on Oct. 17, 2015 during the fourth quarter of the game against Michigan at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor. The Spartans defeated the Wolverines, 27-23.
Down 14-23 against the University of Michigan with hope starting to fade for the Spartans, senior quarterback Connor Cook hit one of his more unlikely targets for a season-saving play.
The Spartans had to score quick to stay in the game and, during the first play of their drive, Cook hit wide open senior fullback Trevon Pendleton, who took the ball 74-and-a-half yards and falling just short of a touchdown.
When asked whether he thought a fat guy should just be given the touchdown at that point, Pendleton asked, "I'm a fat guy now?" before eventually stating that he believed he scored.
“It would have been nice to get in," Pendleton said. "I should’ve done more to not leave it in the refs' hands, obviously."
MSU scored on the next play and eventually went on to win in stunning fashion. Long before Pendleton made the most pivotal play of his career he was on the Spartans' scout team.
Coming out of Portsmouth West High School in Ohio, Pendleton was a three-time all-state, all-area, all-county and all-district selection. He was actually a three-star recruit and the No. 3-ranked fullback in the country according to Rivals, but his only offers were from Air Force and Ball State.
“When I came in I didn’t come here just to get on the team, just to have a jersey — I came here to play and I told my family that right away," Pendleton said. "Obviously I passed up a few scholarship offers to come here. I told them that I came here because could see myself playing here and actually getting on the field."
Trevon struggled to find his way at first, admitting that the first couple of weeks flew by. However, after getting named Scout Team Special Teams Player of the Week vs. Iowa during his redshirt year of 2011, he made a call home telling his family that he knew he would be able to play at MSU.
“When I first got here I went to scout team, played fullback and (I) actually made quite a bit of plays and did some good things there," Pendleton said.
He admitted to going harder on Scout Team than he probably should have. Pendleton joked that the coaches would occasionally get mad at him, but that his effort against the starters gave him confidence and ultimately made them both better.
"That’s something that I’ve always thought about, I’ve always had that confidence. ... That I could play on this level," Pendleton said. "(But) to come in and actually have the opportunity to do that is something that is a dream come true.”
The use of fullbacks, like John Kuhn of the Green Bay Packers or the Detroit Lions recent drafting of Rutgers fullback Michael Burton, has given Pendleton optimistic hopes of a professional career.
“The (NFL) has been my lifelong goal and it’s something I work towards every day," Pendleton said. "Anyone that knows me know (that) I live, breathe this game every day, this is all I do from the time I get up until the time I get down.”
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