Seneca Wallace is currently an NFL quarterback for the Cleveland Browns. The former Cyclone has been in the NFL for nine years, being drafted in 2003 by the Seattle Sehawks after spending two seasons at Iowa State.

In a game in 2002, Wallace became famous for a play known as ‘The Run,’ where he scored a 12-yard touchdown after zig-zagging around the field for some 130 yards. 

Q: People still talk about the play today, so it seems like a good place to begin. Could you take me through ‘The Run’ as you remember it?

A: It was a three-step drop, and I had Lane Danielson out to my left, and I dropped back and a defender, the defensive end, jumped up and tried to bat the ball down. So I pumped and got him to jump, but the timing of the play was off as soon as that happened. After that I was in make-a-play mode and dropped back, pumped, scrambled back out and kind of back-peddled a little bit and ended up running back about 15 yards.

Once I got to the sideline and turned it up, I almost thought I was going to run out of bounds. I said, “Well maybe I should run out of bounds and save the play.” It was kind of weird, because it felt like the Texas Tech defenders kind of stopped. Once they slowed down thinking I was running out of bounds I had a shot to dart and hit the sideline. Once I did that I got a great block on the sideline and got another one from Mike Wagner. So once I got the block and cut it across the field it was pretty much just trying to make a play and get in the end zone.

Q: The estimates vary on how many yards you ran total — between 120 and 135 yards — what did it feel like after the play?

A: The funny part about it was I was on so much adrenaline; it wasn’t like I was even tired after the play. Normally you get a guy to run 100-something yards, he’s going to be exhausted, a little winded. There was so much excitement in the stadium that day — I had a lot of friends and family at the game — it was just a big moment for us at Iowa State.

Q: Did you know at that point that the play would be as big as it is today?

A: (Laughs) No, no, not at all. I’m just glad to be a part of something like that and bring so much attention to Iowa State. The fans love it and are still talking about it — that’s what a lot of us athletes play the sport for. It’s about the memories, and when you have memories like that, that people still hold on to, it makes you feel good because a lot of people respect what you did and you bring a lot of excitement to people’s Saturday.

Q: Outside of that play, what would you say would be your greatest memory in your time at Iowa State?

A: I had so many. The two years went by so fast, but we had a lot of fun and there was so much excitement. From beating Nebraska for the first time in 37 years at home and the fans tearing down the goalposts and rushing the field; to going to Iowa and being down at halftime 24 to 6 or whatever it was and coming back and beating them and pretty much messing up their National Championship hope; and playing in the Eddie Robinson Kickoff Classic against Florida State.

There were so many memories and it was so much fun being apart of it. We went to two bowl games while I was there — unfortunately we lost both of them. … I wish we could have won the one against Alabama in the Independence Bowl.

It’s kind of hard to put my finger on one, but me being able to beat Iowa twice and pretty much mess up their National Championship hopes, I think that’s one of the big ones.

Q: What is your current connection to Iowa State?

A: I want to get it even closer and try and do a lot more things with them. Right now I come back whenever they ask to me to come back to try and help out with the school and the program. I came back about a year ago, it was last year, and did a shot for their commercial.

I just want to get more involved with the school and help the program where we’re getting on the map and getting national attention — and the coach is doing a great job of that right now.

Q: In your NFL career you’ve kind of turned into a veteran, what have you enjoyed most during your time in the league?

A: Just learning. Everyday is different, everyday is a grind and the season is a grind. I think the biggest thing is you take the things you learned from guys that came before you and you find as the years go on that you start doing those things to the younger guys. I’m truly blessed to be doing this as long as I’ve been doing it. There are a lot of great memories that come along with it, and one of the biggest ones is going to the Super Bowl and playing against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Q: Football occupies quite a bit of your time during the year, but what do you enjoy doing during the off-season?

A: Just hanging out with the family. You have to take advantage of your time off because it’s a grind like I said going through the season. Being around the family and being able to relax and spend time with them is really important. You try to recoup from the season because a lot of things transpire during that time, so being able to be around the family and decompress and forget about the stuff that happened during the season [helps] move forward and look to the next year.

Q: One thing that you’ve spent a lot of time with in recent years is your foundation, “Joyce’s Angels.” Could you talk about what that means to you?

A: It means a lot. My mom died of cancer about five years ago; she had multiple myeloma. I did a thing here in Cleveland a couple weeks ago where — my mom’s favorite thing that she loved to bake any holiday, Christmas or anything, and all of us kids loved it a lot, was a rum cake. What I did in honor of her death was I started baking a rum cake every holiday or if it’s her birthday or something like that.

So a couple weeks ago in Cleveland I did a little deal with a cupcake place here in Cleveland that just opened up. I was pretty much turning her cake into a cupcake, which had never been done and a lot of people had never had a rum cupcake before. All the proceeds went back to my foundation to help raise awareness for multiple myeloma. It turned out good, we sold 350 cupcakes the first day and turned around the next day and sold another 200-something — and they’re still selling them, she’s keeping them in the store right now.

Q: You’ve got some years ahead of you in football, but where do you see yourself when your playing career comes to a close?

A: Right now I’m doing some other stuff — getting involved and working in the community and trying to give back to some kids and opening up some group homes. During that process we’re going to help the kids out with teaching them certain skill sets that I can provide for them. We’re not just going to bring them into the home and have them there until they turn 18 or 21 and then release them into the world without having some type of skill set to where they can go out and find a job.

Maybe get into a little bit of coaching at the high school level or something like that. These coaches in the NFL put in too much time, and I don’t know if that’s something I’m ready to take on.