BOONE, N.C. — The Fuller family ties run deep.
Bob has been a member of the Yosef Club since his son, John, played football for Appalachian State in the early 1990s.
Caleb, John's son and Bob's grandson, joined App State's football program as a walk-on in 2013. A starter at defensive end throughout his final two seasons, he wrapped up a productive, overachieving career Saturday with 1.5 sacks and 3.0 tackles for loss in a 34-0 shutout of Toledo in the Dollar General Bowl.
Many members of the Fuller family, including John and Bob, were in Mobile for Caleb's grand finale.
"It's incredible," he said. "You can't dream this up any better because it's the last one, and you want to go out with a bang, go out in style. I think we did that and put an exclamation point on my career."
Fuller started 25 of 26 games over the last two years, coming off the bench only on Senior Day in 2016, and he was named to the All-Sun Belt third team this year before being a disruptive force in the bowl victory. He finished his career with 9.5 sacks and 16.5 tackles for loss.
Fuller didn't have any scholarship offers coming out of Wilmington's New Hanover High School, where his father served as the Wildcats' linebackers coach. He enrolled at App State as a walk-on, had a sack for an 11-yard loss in his debut as a redshirt freshman and received a scholarship heading into his junior season, after he had appeared in 13 games for an 11-2 team that posted its first Camellia Bowl victory.
"He plays with so much passion, it doesn't matter if it's a practice or a game," App State defensive coordinator
Nate Woody said. "He always plays the game with the kind of passion you love to see and love to watch. That's why people watch this game on TV and in the stands, to watch somebody that plays that hard.
"He's the David vs. Goliath sort of story, and he's so quick. I remember the Tennessee game how he just played so fast, was so quick, so tenacious, and he did the same thing (Saturday)."
No longer a walk-on, Fuller made his first start at No. 9 Tennessee in the 2016 opener and had one sack, two tackles for loss and four tackles in a 20-13 overtime loss at Neyland Stadium.
In the Dollar General Bowl, Fuller had a stop for a 3-yard loss to help force a punt after the Mountaineers took a 7-0 lead. The Rockets made their deepest march into App State territory by reaching the 35-yard line late in the second quarter, but Fuller's sack forced a fourth-and-14 punt from the 39, and Toledo didn't get past the Mountaineers' 37 the rest of the night.
Fuller knocked a spinning Logan Woodside off-balance before
Eric Boggs finished off a second-half sack of the standout quarterback, and Fuller was credited with a QB pressure when
Clifton Duck intercepted a fourth-quarter pass.
"Coach Ivey talks about, every week we usually have the advantage, whether we're faster or we're stronger, and we have to take advantage of our matchup," Fuller said of defensive line coach
Mark Ivey. "I think we were able to execute everything we've talked about all year and get it done."
By winning many of its one-on-one matchups up front, App State held Toledo to 146 total yards while recording three interceptions, four sacks, four more QB pressures and seven tackles for loss.
In joining Alabama and Clemson as the only FBS teams with bowl shutouts since 2010, App State handed Toledo its first shutout since 2009. Afterward, Fuller was able to celebrate on the field with a father and grandfather who have been connected to the program for more than 25 years.
"I grew up on App State football," Fuller said. "Being able to be a walk-on, earn a college scholarship and win three straight bowl games, it's a family, and I'm going to miss it so much. It's a bond I'll never be able to replicate."
