Huskies’ Run Follows Road Most-Traveled Dillon Leads Washington With 1,400-Yard Trail To Pullman

The way Washington junior Corey Dillon is running - last time we checked, it was 222 yards per quarter - some have speculated he might soon enter the National Football League draft.

Is Dillon ready? At least one career counselor believes so.

“Definitely,” Washington State coach Mike Price said Tuesday. “And I do mean right now. Today.”

Any time before Saturday’s Apple Cup would do, although Washington coach Jim Lambright is predictably less enthusiastic.

“He’s told us that he’s definitely here for two seasons and he has a lot to learn still,” Lambright said, “and so we feel real good about him still being here.”

Dillon, weary of questions pertaining to past troubles off the field, does not grant interviews.

His statistics speak clearly.

The 6-foot-2, 225-pounder leads the Pacific-10 Conference in rushing yards per game (140) and he probably clinched the Pac-10 rushing title last week, setting an NCAA record with 222 first-quarter yards against San Jose State. He owns six other school records, including most rushing yards in a season (1,400).

Not bad, considering Dillon sat out the final 13:17 against UCLA, the final 11:50 against Oregon, the final 8:57 against USC and the last three quarters against San Jose State. And even more remarkable considering he played sparingly in the season’s first three weeks.

“We’ve never had a running back like him in his first year,” Lambright understated.

After supplanting injured starter Rashaan Shehee, Dillon began a week-to-week battle with WSU’s Michael Black for the Pac-10 rushing lead.

In recent weeks, Dillon has pulled away dramatically. His ascendancy has mirrored Washington’s - the Huskies have won their last five.

Much of the credit goes to the Huskies’ offensive line, which has been dominant since UW’s last loss, Oct. 12 at Notre Dame. Sophomore guard Benji Olson, who plays with the efficiency of a forklift, leads the way.

“Benji has been the heart and soul of the running game,” Lambright said. “He’s just such a great force at blocking people and he moves people so efficiently.”

The San Jose State game was an O-lineman’s dream - the Huskies set a school record with 559 yards rushing.

“What was surprising about San Jose was that they still played a lot of their nickel and coverage that they play in the WAC,” quarterback Brock Huard said, stifling a laugh. “They tried to play that against us and they left six men in the box (near the line of scrimmage).

“You know, with those kind of holes and our kind of line and running backs, it was a pretty ugly day for them.”

Lambright anticipates a much more competitive matchup this week, particularly between interior linemen - Olson, Bob Sapp and Olin Kreutz against WSU defensive tackles Leon Bender and Gary Holmes.

“Oh, it’ll be a great matchup,” Lambright said. “I certainly like the combination of Bender and Holmes - it’s a real strong point for their defense.”

While Dillon and the UW ground game has flourished, WSU’s running attack has slowed dramatically.

Even Black, an elusive runner with the ability to break tackles, hasn’t been able to keep the Cougars from ranking ninth in Pac-10 rushing.

He gets about nine fewer carries per game than Dillon and is now a distant second among Pac-10 runners, averaging 98.2 yards per game. Collectively, the Cougars average just 112.6 yards rushing per game.

Whether WSU runs effectively Saturday will determine how much time Dillon spends on the sideline, and therefore figures to play largely in whether WSU can upset the 12th-ranked Huskies.

“I like Michael. I like the way he runs,” Lambright said. “I think he’s every bit the big-time running back that we’ve seen in this conference.

“His stats talk about that. They’re just, right now, a lot more of a balanced pass-first, run-second type of a team.”

Like any tailback, Black would like more carries, although he remains diplomatic.

“I’m not out there deciding whether we should run or not,” he said. “I just play the game.”

Black, a 5-11, 196-pound junior, hasn’t rushed for more than 97 yards in any of the three games since he gained 214 yards on 25 attempts against California. The low point was a 14-carry, 60-yard performance against USC. (Dillon, by comparison, set a UW record with 37 carries against the Trojans).

Not coincidentally, the Cougars have lost three straight.

“You go into a game wanting to go even, run the ball, get a good running game like we did early in the season,” WSU quarterback Ryan Leaf said. “That’s going to be our game plan, but if all else fails, they’ve got to throw me into the fire throwing the ball.”

“It just depends on how things go. I think Michael will run the ball well.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: TALE OF THE TAPE Corey Dillon, UW junior: 10 games, 233 carries, 1,400 yards*, 6.0 avg., 19 rushing touchdowns*, 140.0 yards per game. Michael Black, WSU junior: 9 games, 161 carries, 884 yards, 7 rushing touchdowns, 98.2 yards per game. *-denotes school single-season record