The only school to offer him a scholarship was Northern Illinois.
He wasn’t drafted until the fifth round, after 153 others were taken ahead of him.
When he became a free agent earlier this year, only one team made a hard push for him.
And now, five weeks into his first NFL season as a starter, Michael Turner is leading the league in rushing yards, rushing touchdowns and rushing first downs. He is as responsible as anyone for the Atlanta Falcons’ surprising 3-2 record.
Turner grew up in North Chicago with a poster on his bedroom wall of the Black and Bruise Brothers — the 1985 Bears offensive line wearing sunglasses and black fedoras.
At Northern Illinois, he finished second in the nation in rushing yards twice. He also set career records for rushing yards, touchdowns and all-purpose yards for the Huskies.
The Bears had no interest in Turner in the 2004 draft. At the time, scouts from three NFL teams agreed he lacked a special quality.
Even though Turner averaged 5.5 yards per carry over his first four years in the league, the Bears didn’t call when Turner became a free agent last February.
They knew the 2008 draft offered quality running backs, and the Bears were intent on appropriating their cash budget to their own players.
The Bears will see what they could have had when they travel to Atlanta on Sunday to take on Turner’s Falcons.
Before free agency, many believed Turner might be standing on the Bears’ sideline for this game. “I was getting that from everybody — family, friends,” Turner said. “They wanted me to go there. But that’s just barbershop talk. They drafted a good running back in [Matt] Forte, so I’m happy for them.
“I was surprised they didn’t call, though. This was a second chance to get me.”
The only question most teams had about Turner this time was if he could be “The Man.” In four years in San Diego behind LaDainian Tomlinson, he averaged 57 carries a season.
Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff said the team never questioned whether Turner could be a full-time back.
Turner has had more runs in the last five weeks than he had in any previous season, and he hardly looks affected.
He says he is spending more time in the hot tub, getting massages, working with foam rollers, stretching and lifting weights in order to keep his body fresh and loose. It’s the same regimen that worked for Tomlinson and Lorenzo Neal in San Diego.
Really, why shouldn’t Turner be able to hold up over 16 games? His listed weight is 244 pounds.
The only starting halfbacks in the NFL who are heavier are Brandon Jacobs of the Giants at 264 and Jamal Lewis of the Browns at 245.
And it’s not like Turner is a soft 244. The last time he measured his body fat, it was 10 percent.
How his weight is distributed is what makes Turner such a special player.
His listed height is 5 feet 10 inches, though his Atlanta teammates tease him and say he would only measure 5-10 if he were wearing 2-inch stiletto heels.
He carries much of his weight between his waist and his knees. A tailor’s nightmare he is, with a rear end that could eclipse the sun and thighs that could serve as bridge supports.
Turner wasn’t aware what the circumference of his thighs was, but he agreed to be measured. The result: 30 1/4 inches each. That might lead the NFL too. The thighs of Hall of Fame running back Earl Campbell famously measured 34 inches.
Is it any wonder Turner had a league-leading 253 yards after contact through four weeks? According to STATS, he also led the league in broken tackles with 12 and was averaging 3.3 yards per attempt after contact — the highest among starting running backs. The next closest player, Minnesota’s Adrian Peterson, is averaging 2.4 yards per carry after contact — nearly a full yard less.
Asked if he looks to make contact or avoid it when he runs, Turner said, “I expect to make contact, put it like that.” He says the keys to breaking tackles are leg drive and maintaining a low center of gravity.
“There is not a lot of hitting space on him,” Falcons offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey says. “Whatever you’re hitting usually is coming at you like a locomotive. You can’t arm tackle him.”
If Turner were just a power back, the Falcons might not have more victories than the Chargers. He’s also a big-play back. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.47, and he plays faster than that.
His 14 rushes of 10 yards or more leads the NFL, and in his career he has had four runs of 66 yards or more.
Hardly any runners have Turner’s combination of inside power and outside speed. Peterson does. Maybe Lewis and Larry Johnson.
“I love the way he runs with power,” Dimitroff said. “And he has a deceptive speed about him. Hits it inside, knocks it outside, turns the corner and gets in second gear to pull away from outside linebackers and defensive backs. And he does it with a big smile and a hop in his step.”
Turner is a soft-spoken young man who laughs easily. He is just starting to understand what it’s like to be the centerpiece of a team, on and off the field.
After the Falcons gave him a six-year contract with $15 million in guarantees, Turner is willing to do whatever is required — even if it means showing up at the team facility for an interview on his day off.
He is comfortable in his new city — he knew he would be after visiting as a free agent. Falcons owner Arthur Blank took him to dinner and an Arena League game.
Everything has worked out well in Atlanta except one thing: The sister of teammate John Abraham told Abraham that Turner, who was known at Northern as “The Burner,” reminded him of the Marta trains that are used in Atlanta’s public transportation system. Abraham and his teammates started calling him “Marta.” And now the media has picked up on it.
“I asked him to keep it between us, but he couldn’t hold it in,” Turner said, laughing. “Now it’s out and it can’t be controlled.”
Turner has no say in the matter. Atlanta is climbing aboard for the ride.
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dpompei@tribune.com
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