Bruce Answers Bo’s Challenge Like True Tiger

When Aundray Bruce heard the rapping at his Los Angeles hotel room Saturday night, he never dreamed it was opportunity knocking.

But as it turned out, it was the opportunity he had been waiting for to show that he deserved to be the No. 1 pick in the 1988 National Football League draft, that his slow start for the Atlanta Falcons this season had more to do with technique than talent, that he could be an impact player as advertised.

When Bruce opened the door, he broke into a big smile. Standing there was Bo Jackson, his former teammate and close friend at Auburn.

They would meet in about 12 hours on the Coliseum floor in the Falcon-Raider game, but first, Jackson had come by to drop off a challenge.

This game would serve as the test, Jackson told Bruce, to determine who was the best player to come out of Auburn.

Jackson might as well have slapped Bruce across the face with a glove. The duel was on.

“Of course, I had to accept the challenge,” Bruce said. “It was a personal thing among the Auburn family. I couldn’t go home knowing he had beat me.

“But I beat him. I beat him to death.”

Not to mention the rest of the Raiders.

In a 12-6 Falcon victory, a game dominated by the defenses, Bruce was the most dominant of all.

In the second quarter, Raider Coach Mike Shanahan tried to throw the Falcons off-balance with a pass off a double reverse. The play went Steve Beuerlein to Bo Jackson to James Lofton and back to Beuerlein, who fired downfield for Jackson.

But also awaiting the ball was the other half of the Auburn connection. Bruce beat Jackson to the ball and wound up with the game’s only interception.

In the third quarter, Bruce sacked Beuerlein, forcing the Raiders to punt. Atlanta took the ball and drove to its second field goal.

Tied 6-6 in the fourth quarter, the Raiders were again marching toward the end zone. Or at least within the range of kicker Chris Bahr, a more realistic goal Sunday, everything considered.

On a third-and-5 at the Raider 40-yard line, Bruce came crashing in from the left side, smothered Beuerlein and popped the ball loose. He chased it down the field and wound up with it in his arms at the Raider 12.

And that was the end of that. Four plays later, John Settle took the ball in from the 1 for the clincher.

Bruce seemed to be everywhere Sunday.

On the Raiders’ next-to-last drive of the game, Bruce, utilized in pass coverage far more than in the past, came over to knock down a ball intended for Mervyn Fernandez.

“I think Aundray is feeling better about himself, and how he fits in,” said Marion Campbell, Atlanta coach. “He is going to be something special.

“We have been trying to settle him down and get him to learn the outside linebacker spot. Going from Auburn University to being a starting linebacker in the NFL is a big jump. But I’ve started him from Day One because he is our future. You’ve got to have patience with these young guys. You can’t make your mind up too early about them. I’ve had guys wind up going to the Pro Bowl who didn’t play their rookie year.”

No question Bruce’s progress has been slow. He has six sacks this season, including the two Sunday. His interception was his first.

“The way I’ve been playing here has been eating at me since the opener,” Bruce said. “I couldn’t let myself get down, but I wasn’t performing like I wanted to. The hardest thing has been the mental part, knowing what to do. All I did at Auburn was line up on the open side and play.

“Here, I have not had that luxury. I’ve had to accept lining up over the tight end and taking on more blockers. But with (linebacker) Marcus (Cotton) hurt, I get the open side and I can leave that tight end alone.”

Nobody is quite ready to call Bruce the best player to come out of Auburn, but Jackson may think twice before issuing another challenge.

Actually, Bruce started the war of words, saying earlier in the week that he never got to hit Jackson at Auburn because Jackson never showed up for practice.

But beneath all the talk, the athletes are united by another bond.

“Bo has a speech problem just like I do,” said Bruce, who, as a child, used to hide in his house in Montgomery, Ala., because of a stuttering problem. “But I’m getting better. At Auburn, it would take me 3 hours to finish one sentence.”

In 3 hours time Sunday, he finished off the Raiders.