Kansas City, Mo. – Even the usually poker-faced media became wide-eyed on this one.
Oklahoma running back Adrian Peterson sat at a small, round table in a Marriott hotel ballroom Wednesday morning, at no point surrounded by fewer than 30 reporters. The jaw-dropping question-and-answer exchange was short and sweet.
“If you’re healthy for the entire year, how many yards do you think you could have rushing this year?” he was asked.
“I set my goals high. I always have,” the junior tailback replied, almost symbolically glancing toward the ceiling before bringing his eyes back down to the person who asked the question. “I guess I’ll call a number out.”
Short pause.
“About 2,200,” Peterson said.
“Like I said, I set my goals high,” he said. “It’s not like I’m crazy or overconfident or anything. It’s just how I am.”
If anyone in the nation can get it done, Peterson’s the guy. Because, as Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops told the media about 20 minutes before Peterson’s 2,200-yard declaration, “With Adrian back there, that’s the focal point, where it all begins.”
So he’ll get the ball. And to be fair, he’s almost there already. Peterson ran for 1,925 yards as a freshman. But he would have to average 183.3 yards per game over 12 games this season to get it done.
It’s rare, but not unprecedented. Eight players in Division I-A history have averaged more than 183 yards per game, including former Colorado star Rashaan Salaam in his 2,055-yard season in 1994. Only two – Marcus Allen in 1981 and Barry Sanders in 1988 – have run for more than 2,200 yards in a season. And Sanders (2,628 yards) and Allen (2,342) did it in 11 games. The most recent 2,000-yard season was in 2004, when California’s J.J. Arrington ran for 2,018 in 12 games.
Yet Peterson’s biggest hurdle may not be the defenders, but his health. Nagging injuries as a freshman became major setbacks as a sophomore. Peterson missed more than half of four games in 2005 with a high ankle sprain, but still managed to gain more yards (1,108) than any other Big 12 running back.
“It was hard being out, just watching the guys go out there without me,” he said. “It was hurting to sit on the sideline and watch. I’m just glad it’s over with. I’m more hungry to go out and get something done.”
Peterson is among the preseason favorites to win the Heisman Trophy, something he said would be nice but doesn’t occupy his mind. What does, however, is the prospect of reuniting with his father this year for the first time since he was in the seventh grade.
Peterson’s dad, Nelson Peterson, was jailed in 1999 for laundering money received for selling crack cocaine. He was recently moved to a halfway house. Peterson is hopeful his father will be released before the start of Oklahoma’s season.
Doctor tug-of-war
Baylor’s Daniel Sepulveda, arguably the best punter in the country, suffered a torn ACL playing in a pickup basketball game during Easter weekend. Coach Guy Morriss wasn’t expecting Sepulveda to be ready for the Sept. 3 season opener against TCU, but his punter said he will be.
“I told Daniel I’ve never seen it done,” Morriss said. “But Daniel, he’s the kind of guy that will make a believer out of you in a hurry.”
Word is, however, Baylor trainers are skeptical about whether that will be the case. The two sides will have to come to an agreement on his health and risk of further injury before Sepulveda is allowed on the field.
Chris Dempsey can be reached at 303-820-5455 or cdempsey@denverpost.com.