Raiders RB coach Deland McCullough shares amazing story of learning father's identity

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Vincent Bonsignore, Las Vegas Review-Journal

LAS VEGAS -- Imagine going through the first 45 years of your life longing for the presence of your father, only to discover you not only knew him, but he had been a key part of your life since high school.

It sounds like a pitch for a Father's Day movie, right?

Yet that's exactly the bombshell that dropped into the lap of Raiders running backs coach Deland McCullough in 2017. He learned the identity of his biological mother, then also found out his biological father had been his role model, mentor and confidant for almost three decades.

McCullough, 52, said he was "completely blown away" when he learned his father was Sherman Smith, who had essentially been his life coach since recruiting McCullough to play college football at Miami (Ohio) in 1990.

"If someone were to say to you, of all the people you've met in your life, who would you like to be your dad? I know that probably sounds like a weird question. But if someone asked me who would fit that profile, well, he would be the No. 1 person," said McCullough, hired by the Raiders in February after Pete Carroll was named coach.

What made it all the more improbable was Smith, now 70, was in the dark, too.

"The first I knew about any of this was when Deland called me up to tell me I was his father," Smith said.

Smith and McCullough's biological mother, Carol Briggs, had a brief relationship as teenagers in 1972 in Youngstown, Ohio. Briggs and her family, after discovering she was pregnant, decided the baby would be placed for adoption.

Briggs decided not to tell Smith because he was beginning his college football career at Miami (Ohio). Smith remained unaware of the pregnancy until McCullough reached out to him eight years ago and said he had something important to discuss.

McCullough always wanted to know the identity of his biological parents. He became even more determined after having four sons -- Deland II, Dasan, Daeh and Diem -- with his wife, Darnell, and being unable to fill out forms stating the medical history of his side of the family.

McCullough decided to take advantage of new laws in Ohio and Pennsylvania in the 2010s that allowed for the unsealing of adoption records. That led him to Briggs, who told him his father was Smith.

The kid Smith bonded with as a college football coach and took under his wing turned out to actually be his son.

"This is God's story," Smith said. "There is no question about that to me."

Longing for a father figure

Briggs placed McCullough -- then named Jon Briggs -- for adoption soon after he was born in December 1972 in Allison Park, Pa. His adoptive parents were Adelle Comer and A.C. McCullough of Youngstown, Ohio.

Deland McCullough was 2 when his adopted father moved out. He can't pinpoint the exact moment he realized things were different for him compared to his childhood friends with fathers in their lives. But deep down, he probably always knew.

"I never thought that that was normal by any stretch," McCullough said. "Like, hey, it's normal to have a father in the same town you're in (that) doesn't help you, doesn't talk to you, doesn't do nothing. I knew that wasn't normal."

McCullough, through all that hurt and disappointment, persevered. Feeling sorry for himself was not an option.

"For me, it was enough other stuff going on that I wasn't sitting up boo-hooing about the dad who wasn't there," McCullough said. "Because it was other things that required more attention. Things that I needed to take care of. Things are going on in our lives and my family's life."

He was also driven to make sure his children never felt the same way.

"It was always clearly on the back burner that, when I'm in a position to be a father, my kids won't have to wonder or worry, or have the concerns or feel the disappointment that I felt," McCullough said.

Sports became an escape

McCullough played basketball and was a track athlete growing up, but football was the sport he gravitated to. Being on the field provided an escape from the chaos of his family life.

He developed into a talented running back at Campbell Memorial High School in Campbell, Ohio. By his senior year, college recruiters were showing up trying to convince him to come to their school.

That's when fate intervened.

One of the schools in hot pursuit of McCullough was Miami (Ohio). Smith, a former RedHawks standout quarterback, was the school's running backs coach after spending eight years in the NFL.

McCullough remembers Smith arriving to his high school in a red Mercedes-Benz and then sticking out his hand to introduce himself. McCullough was drawn to Smith immediately.

"He's a good-looking guy, he played in the NFL. Smart, articulate. He's got a college degree," McCullough said. "All the things that I would like to have. He represented something that I would like to be."

Smith felt an immediate connection, too. He was drawn to McCullough's story of growing up without a father figure in an adopted family.

"He didn't always have it easy, obviously," Smith said.

Around that time, Smith made a pledge to McCullough he repeated several times over the next few years.

"You may not be looking for a father figure, but I'm going to treat you like my son," Smith said.

Smith set high expectations for McCullough on the field and pushed him hard. He knew immediately McCullough was determined to succeed.

"I could tell he was very serious and focused on what he needed to do," Smith said. "He had a life that wasn't always easy. But he was determined to overcome all of that. He saw the opportunity he had, and hard work wasn't going to be anything that was going to keep him from succeeding."

McCullough set a Miami (Ohio) record -- since broken -- with 4,368 career rushing yards. He played in the NFL and the Canadian Football League, but soon found his passion was coaching.

He returned to his alma mater as a coaching intern in 2010 and was named the running backs coach at Indiana the following year.

McCullough always kept in touch with Smith, and their paths crossed again when McCullough accepted an internship with the Seahawks in 2014. Smith was Seattle's running backs coach under Carroll.

"You could just tell (McCullough) had a good knowledge of the game," Smith said. "The way he approached coaching and wanted to coach was really impressive to me."

McCullough was coaching USC's running backs three years later when his adoption records came in the mail. He learned Briggs was his biological mother, then asked her on a subsequent phone call for the name of his father.

After a brief pause, she said, "Sherman Smith."

There was no question in McCullough's mind she was referring to the Sherman Smith he had known for years. He was shocked, but also grateful a man he revered was his father.

"I felt an extreme level of pride," McCullough said. "I was super excited."

The phone call

McCullough, after the processing the news, texted Smith to say he had something to talk about. He thought Smith would respond by saying he would call as soon as he could.

Instead, Smith called right back.

"Now I'm on the spot," McCullough said.

McCullough told Smith he located his biological mom. Then he said something even more surprising.

"She told me you're my father," McCullough said.

Smith had no idea his brief relationship with Briggs resulted in a pregnancy. He was stunned.

"I was silent," Smith said. "I didn't know what to say."

Smith told McCullough he needed time to process everything. McCullough understood.

"Put yourself in his shoes," McCullough said. "Can you imagine hearing something like that?"

Smith, more than anything else, felt sorry. The way he saw it, his irresponsibility forced Briggs to make a gut-wrenching decision about whether to place McCullough for adoption. Smith later called Briggs to express his regret, and the two have stayed in contact since.

Smith was also upset that his actions led to McCullough not having a father figure in his life.

"I was more disappointed in the fact that Deland didn't have what I had. I had my father in my life, and he didn't," Smith said. "I don't know what kind of father I would have been at 18 years old. But just the fact that I was responsible for him being in that situation, I felt bad."

Smith and McCullough eventually hashed things out and even took a DNA test for confirmation. They agreed beforehand that no matter what the results showed, they would remain on good terms.

"Deland said, 'Hey, if you are my dad, that's great,' " Smith said. "'We already have a relationship, and we'll build on it. If you aren't my dad, that's OK, too. We'll still have a relationship.' "

McCullough told his incredible story in the book "Runs in the Family: An Incredible True Story of Football, Fatherhood, and Belonging," which he co-wrote with Sarah Spain. The book was published this month.

His journey was also the basis for Kendrick Brothers' 2021 film "Show Me the Father."

"We can't make up for the years that we lost," said Smith, who has two other children with his wife, Sharon. "All we can do is go forward from here. And that was our conversation. Let's just go forward from here. And that's what we've done."