Rankin and Dixon share Pac-10 honor
The award is Pac-10 Player of the Week, not position grouping.
So there was little choice but for the conference to give it to running back Louis Rankin if it was going to honor Washington’s rushing performance in its 27-9 win over Stanford on Saturday.
But Rankin and coach Tyrone Willingham each made it clear: They wished the award could have been spread around a bit.
“That was clearly the best they’ve blocked all season,” Rankin said of the offensive line. “Anybody could have stepped in there.”
But fact was, it was Rankin who did the high-stepping, going for 255 of UW’s 388 rushing yards, earning a share of the conference offensive Player of the Week award, along with Oregon’s Dennis Dixon.
It was the second honor for a UW player this year. Cornerback Roy Lewis was singled out for his defensive play against Boise State.
And it’s the first time a UW offensive player has won the award since 2003 when Charles Frederick was honored for his play in a game at Oregon State.
Before knowing Rankin had won the award, Willingham said, “I hope when they do it, they award our offensive line some accolades also because I thought they did a wonderful job in opening up some holes for him. And obviously he did some things that only Louis can do.
“There are a couple of opportunities where there are men standing right in the hole to tackle him and he eludes them. That’s only something he can do. He had one heck of a ballgame.”
Rankin said it was the most yards he has ever had in any game, saying in high school and younger grades he was usually taken out before he could get that many.
“That’s a game I always dreamed about having,” he said, adding it was especially exciting because it came close to his home of Stockton, Calif., with about 60 friends and family in attendance.
Rankin now has 793 yards for the season and for the first time since after the Ohio State game he has passed Jake Locker as the team’s leading rusher. Locker has 791 yards; the two are fifth and sixth in the conference in rushing. Each is threatening to become UW’s first 1,000-yard rusher since Rashaan Shehee in 1997.
Rankin has been particularly effective of late with 479 yards on 74 carries in the last four games, an average of 6.4 yards per carry.
“I feel like that’s expected,” Rankin said.
UW is now No. 2 in rushing in the Pac-10 at 192.8 yards per game, and third in conference games only at 193.
Bob Condotta: bcondotta@seattletimes.com