Born and raised in Philadelphia, Mississippi, Dupree's playing in high school attracted national attention.
[5] Author Willie Morris described the audience at Dupree's final high school game as "the most distinctive crowds I had ever seen...four thousand or so people seemed almost an equal of mix of whites, blacks, and Indians...After Marcus scored his touchdown, [Sid Salter] saw Cecil Price, Sr. [a Klansman who had been involved in the murders of Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner during the Civil Rights Movement].
Oklahoma assistant coach Lucious Selmon spent six weeks in the Downtown Motor Inn in Philadelphia,[7] and after Dupree verbally committed to Fred Akers and the Texas Longhorns while on his visit there, OU head coach Barry Switzer sent former Oklahoma Sooner and Heisman Trophy winner Billy Sims to the town by private plane to appeal to Dupree.
On February 12, 1982, Dupree announced he would attend Oklahoma instead of the other finalists, Texas, UCLA, and Southern Miss.
Earl Campbell was the only other guy I ever saw who was like that—physically ready, as a true freshman, to be the best player on a great college team.
[3] For the fourth game Switzer abandoned his favored wishbone offense and made Dupree the tailback in the I formation to take advantage of his skills.
As a result, he was given the starting tailback position over Stanley Wilson and was named Big Eight Offensive Player of the Week.
[7] On January 1, 1983, Dupree's freshman season ended with a 32-21 Fiesta Bowl loss against Arizona State.
Coming back from Christmas break, he was out of shape and 10–15 pounds overweight, for which Switzer publicly criticized him.
"[10] Hampered by injuries, Dupree gained 369 yards on 61 carries with three touchdowns while playing in four of the first five games of the season.
For every Marcus Allen, Barry Sanders or Emmitt Smith, there's an Anthony Thompson, a Paul Palmer and a LeShon Johnson, guys who never matched their college success in the NFL.
The upstart league had initially sworn off underclassmen in hopes of appeasing college coaches and officials angered by the blockbuster signing of Herschel Walker after his junior year.
However, after a federal judge ruled that the eligibility rule violated antitrust law, the Breakers–who had just moved from Boston–quickly persuaded the New Jersey Generals to give up their territorial rights to Dupree (OU was among the Generals' territorial schools) in return for their first-round pick in the 1985 USFL Draft.
Breakers fans saw him as a local boy made good; the Superdome was packed with large crowds by USFL standards.
Dupree agreed and began working out, losing 100 pounds in just over three months and going back to running a 4.3 40-yard dash.
[13] During week nine of the 1990 season, Dupree made his first appearance and rushed for 22 yards on four carries, wearing number 34 in honor of Payton instead of his usual 22.
[14] Before the 1992 season, Dupree led the Rams in rushing in the preseason, which included a 100-yard game in the final preseason game against the Los Angeles Raiders, but was one of the 14 players cut by coach Chuck Knox to trim the team down to the 47-player regular-season roster, and he retired shortly afterward.
"[16] He finished his career with 251 yards on 68 carries during regular season play, for a 3.7 yards-per-carry average, rushing for one touchdown.