LAFAYETTE, LA (KLFY) – Carencro native Kevin Faulk was one of the nation’s top recruits in the mid-1990s.
He led the Bears to a state title as a sophomore in 1992 and was also a USA Today All-American.
In ’95, Faulk committed to the LSU Tigers, and he would go on to etch his name in the record books.
This past week, he was elected to the 2022 College Football Hall of Fame.
“All glory and honor to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,” Faulk says. “Without him, without my family, important friends, this would not be possible at all.”
Faulk made an immediate impact in Baton Rouge, earning SEC Freshman of the Year.
He went on to break 11 program records in his four-year career. To this day, the All-American holds the records for most rushing yards, rushing touchdowns, all-purpose yards, and 100-yard rushing games.
Faulk and the Tigers earned two top-15 rankings and three bowl victories.
“I talked to a lot of teammates yesterday from those LSU years,” Faulk says. “The number one thing I told them is that this was for them. It’s the times we had, the memories we had, the opportunities to bond as a unit, to bond as friends, and to be able to still talk about it now. That’s what it’s all about.”
When the star recruit committed to Gerry DiNardo and the Tigers, it was during an era of college football where most of Louisiana’s top talent would leave the state to play for more successful programs.
Faulk stayed home for his family.
“Any big decision I make, I always sit down by myself and ask God to give me a sign, which direction I need to go, which direction I may need to go,” Faulk says. “That sign that particular moment in that situation was my oldest daughter being born the day I got back from Florida. There could be no bigger sign for me than that. Whenever she was born and I held her, I know I wasn’t going too far.”
He only moved 60 minutes down the road to create a legacy that would live on for years.
A kid from Carencro, now in the College Football Hall of Fame forever.
“You dream to make it, to make it out, to make it understandable that you can get out for younger kids younger than you,” Faulk says. “To accomplish that, it just means a lot. It lets you know that all the hard work, the dedication, the changing that you did as a person, as a dad, it’s all going in the right direction.
The honor comes after a tough year for Faulk personally, but he says the recognition uplifted him “times 20.”
“It’s been tough,” Faulk says. “But like I always say, gotta have faith. Gotta have faith. Having faith means that nothing happens to you. It happens for you.”
Faulk’s faith and hard work throughout his entire career led to many more achievements after LSU.
He played with the New England Patriots for 13 years, winning three Super Bowls and being inducted to the franchise’s Hall of Fame.