Euclid running back Brandon Wright’s star is on the rise

There was a time when Brandon Wright was afraid to play tackle football.

Times have changed just a tad.

Now a 6-foot-3, 221-pound senior-to-be at Euclid, Wright is one of the top up-and-coming running backs in the state of Ohio. And he has a growing list of FBS offers to back it up.

Wright attended the John Carroll Football “Light Up The Land” camp on June 1, but did not work out with the 550 others who signed up for the satellite camp that included tutelage from coaches from John Carroll, the University of Cincinnati, the University of Notre Dame, Kent State and others.

His junior year just ended a few days ago, but Wright is itching for a senior year that could end up being one of the biggest breakout seasons in the state of Ohio.

“Oh yeah, I want to have a big year,” the soft-spoken Wright said. “I want to make something happen.”

Wright did a pretty good job of that last season when he ran for more than 500 yards despite being the backup to first team Division I all-Ohioan Ronald Lee, who ran for 2,304 yards and 23 touchdowns.

Wright has never been a first-string varsity running back, but that hasn’t stopped him from piling up an early list of offers from the likes of Cincinnati, Purdue, Pitt, Boston College, Kent State and Western Michigan.

The list is going to continue to grow.

“I want Brandon to be the hungriest guy on the field,” Coach Jeff Rotsky said. “If he can be that, he will be the best to come out of Euclid in a long time. I mean, Ronald Lee is unbelievable. But he’s 5-7. This kid, Brandon, is 6-3.”

Wright combines his 6-foot-3, 221-pound frame with exceptional speed. He runs a 4.5 (maybe a smidgen less, he said) in the 40-yard dash.

He is following a dream that he’s had for a long time, but one he was kind of afraid to follow.

“I always dreamed of this,” he said, “but when I was little, I was scared to do tackle football. My dad motivated me to do it. My eighth grade year I gave it a chance and I just ran everybody over.”

Now he has the speed to go around — and away from — defenders, too.

“I just need to stay focused and motivated,” Wright said. “I’d love to break Ronald’s record. I talked with him about it, and he wants me to break it. So I’m going to try.”