Had it not been for the all-time leading rusher in Penguin football history, Robby Robson, Paris Wicks would have played regularly two years earlier and your imagination could only run wild as to what his offensive statistics might have been.
As it turned out, he had to settle for being the Penguins' second leading rusher all-time but with his calm demeanor both on and off the field of play, probably put together the best two back-to-back seasons rushing of any Penguin running back. Arguably, he had the greatest game of any back and his one-man offensive show against the University of Northern Iowa at the Uni-dome in Cedar Falls, Iowa, on November 21 1981, is a game that witnessed by anyone in attendance would not be forgotten for quite some time.
On that day, the regular season finale for both schools, the Penguins went into the game with a 7-3-0 overall mark, their first in I-AA and eyeing a post-season play-off berth. The game didn't start out the way that the Penguins wanted it to. They trailed 21-3 after one quarter of play and went into the locker room at the half down 38-10, the lone touchdown coming on a Wicks nine-yard run with just :14 left in the half.
As the third quarter began, the Penguin defense came to the rescue of an absent YSU offense, the Penguins managing only a Paul McFadden 46-yard field goal to trail after three quarters of play, 38-13. But when the fourth quarter started, so did Wicks and the fireworks. As he was a wind-up toy and told to score, Wicks scored four touchdowns in the final stanza and if not for a missed two point conversion on the final score, the Penguins would have ended up with a tie, yet had to settle for a 45-43 loss in what has been termed the greatest rally by any Penguin football team.
All wicks did was set the record for touchdowns in a single game (five), and points in a single game (32), rushing for 215 yards in the game on 33 carries-all in a days work for the man who was affectionately called by his friends "Sweet Pea!".
A regular his final two seasons as a Penguin, he gained 3,101 yards on the 595 carries, an average of 5.2 per tote with 30 touchdowns (tied for third on the career list) and 182 total points (sixth on the all-time list).
His demeanor on the field was exceeded only by his gentlemanly manner off, proving time and again during his four year career at YSU that if you wait patiently, you'll get a chance and you must make the best of it. He waited and made the best of his opportunity, yet he also proved that there definitely is room in the game for the little guy, for his 5'10" frame qualified him as one of the gutsiest players inch-for-inch to ever suit up the scarlet and white.
Currently the manager of the production Division of Chrysler in Twinsburg, Ohio (his division produces body panels panels for all Chrysler products), he is the father of two children, Courtney and Paris II.
