UW faces another defensive test

SEATTLE – Scott White said Fresno’s Dwayne Wright hasn’t changed much since they were on the Skyline Tigers 15 years ago when they were youth in the San Diego area. OK, so Wright is bigger, but he still wears No. 32, still plays running back, still meets defenders head on and usually runs right over them.

“He was always our main dude,” said White, Washington’s senior linebacker. “He was always just a great player. He’s been a great running back ever since we were 7.”

It will be the second week in a row when White and the Husky defense have faced one of the nation’s top rushers. Last week, it was Oklahoma’s Adrian Peterson, who ranks sixth in the country in rushing yards after gaining 165 yards in the Sooners’ victory last Saturday. This week it’s Wright, a 220-pound load who ranks third in the nation with 156 yards per game.

But while Peterson and Wright both can be counted upon to get their yards, they do it differently.

“What we’ll see is a more physical style of play than what we saw at Oklahoma,” UW coach Tyrone Willingham said. “We saw a back at Oklahoma who is talented in a lot of areas and he does a fantastic job on the perimeter. The back we’ll see this week is one of those guys who will be able to pound you.”

Wright, who is married with two kids and another on the way, is making up for lost time this season. He missed nearly all of the last two seasons after tearing his patellar tendon in the second game of the 2004 season. He had opened that year with a 109-yard effort in a victory over the Huskies. That came on the heels of his 2003 season in which he ran for 1,038 yards and three touchdowns in his first season after transferring from West Hills (Calif.) Junior College.

He had once committed to play at Washington State University, but ended up choosing Fresno State when he finished at West Hills.

“Dwayne is a physical north-south runner,” Fresno coach Pat Hill said. “He’s very physical (with a) strong lower body. He’s able to break tackles. After two games, he just keeps pounding it in there. He’s also very instrumental in our blitz pickup.”

Wright actually has two years of eligibility remaining, but Hill said if he has another good season – and with a family to support – it’s likely Wright would leave for the NFL after this season.