Background: Tepper never thought his football career would nearly end, not to mention his ability to walk, when he and three friends walked across Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley in June 2005. But that’s what happened when a car pulled up and two men began harassing one of his friends, former Cal volleyball player Camille Leffall. They asked for her phone number and when she ignored them, one said, “I don’t think you heard me. I want your number.” Tepper stepped in front of her and told the men she wasn’t interested. The car then bumped Leffall and Tepper jumped on her to keep her out of danger. The men weren’t through. They backed up and ran over Tepper’s leg, then put the car in drive and did it again. It took doctors more than an hour to stop the bleeding and they nearly had to amputate his foot. Instead they put in a plate and some screws. He missed the 2005 season. “I just did what was natural. I didn’t think about being a hero or anything,” he said.
Stat line: The 6-foot-6, 336-pound sophomore is second team at offensive tackle behind senior Andrew Cameron. This is his first action since starring at Pacifica High in Cypress, Calif., in 2003.
What’s up: He’s healthy and is looking forward to being a hero on the field. He had some rust in the spring but is looking at two years as a starter on Cal’s line beginning next season. The driver, Johnny Ray Smith, 33, was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon and is serving time in San Quentin. Smith was on probation at the time of the incident after pleading no contest to first-degree burglary for stealing from a Berkeley home.
What’s next: California hosts Portland State on Saturday.
Henderson’s take: It doesn’t take much to be a hero. Just stand up for somebody and it usually defuses the situation. Unfortunately, Tepper picked some thugs who thumbed their nose at the law. Fortunately, Tepper can thumb his nose at them. “Something that really hasn’t left my mind is people who walk away from situations because of the possibility of something happening to them,” Tepper told the San Francisco Chronicle in August. “Other than that, I don’t think about it much. I wasn’t looking to do something spectacular so I don’t accept the hero tag at all.”
