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Remember Woodhead? He's back, baby!
That was the first half.
Then the second half happened.
Danny Woodhead, the little 5-7½, 200-pound engine that could, rushed for 247 yards in the second half against the Skyhawks, leading his nationally ranked Chadron State Eagles to a 40-27 victory that Saturday afternoon at Ray Dennison Memorial Field. “In the first half, it was a little tough. I had to change up my running style; I went downhill instead of shifty," Woodhead told The Durango Herald that day. “They did miss some tackles (in the second half), but my offensive line was getting in their way a lot, and that certainly made it tougher for them.
“In the first half we were trying to mix it up, be more balanced. In the second half we wanted to run the ball. We were averaging 5 yards per carry, so we decided to stick with the run - it worked."
Woodhead capped his banner day with 301 yards rushing and three touchdowns.
The North Platte, Neb., native interviewed with the Herald while his teammates chanted “Harlon" near the 50-yard line. “More than anything, it's the wins that are important," he said. “If there are any individual awards at the end of the season, that's for my offensive line."
Woodhead capped his banner season with his second Harlon Hill trophy, joining Johnny Bailey and Dusty Bonner as the only repeat winners of the Division II Heisman equivalent.
Woodhead capped his banner career with 7,962 rushing yards, which was then an NCAA all-divisions record, and 9,479 all-purpose yards, which ranks second to Barry Sanders on the NCAA all-time list. He still holds all-divisions records with 19 200-yard games in 39 appearances and 37 consecutive games with a touchdown, and he is tied for the D-II career scoring lead with 654 points on 109 touchdowns.
Why do I mention all of this as we enter the Championship round of the NFL playoffs?
Woodhead, who went undrafted but was signed as a free agent runner/returner/receiver in 2008 by the Jets, remains with the J-E-T-S in the N-F-L, and after his one reception for negative-one yard in their upset victory against the Chargers last weekend, he bares watching.
Not that his statistics, or, rather, statistic, is eye-popping, but the former Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference fire hydrant of a running back bares watching in the Jets' run-first, run-second and run-third offensive attack. And with Braylon Dropballs (not) catching passes as your No. 1 receiver, there's even more incentive to throw Woodhead's way. AFC Championship N.Y. Jets at Indianapolis - Call me crazy, but I'm jumping on the Rex Ryan bandwagon. I think the Jets are going to run the ball, and the run the ball, and run the ball through, around, over and - in Woodhead's case - under the Colts' 24th-ranked rush defense. I think the Jets are going to make the Colts regret Week 15. Jets: 24-21. Line: Colts by 7½.
NFC Championship Minnesota at New Orleans - Call me crazy, but I'm jumping on the Brett Favre bandwagon. I think the Vikings are one of the most well-rounded teams in the league. They can pass with the Saints, and they can run - All Day - against the Saints. Vikings: 37-34. Line: Saints by 3½.
heraldsports@durangoherald.com
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