Knight in untouchable armor

When the Rams run onto the field at Pacific Bell Park in San

Francisco to face Boston College in the Diamond Walnut San

Francisco Bowl they will find a 5-foot-9-inches, 205-pound obstacle

blocking their path to victory. That obstacle is senior running

back Derek Knight.

Knight is the fuel behind the mighty Boston College offense that

averages 407.8 yards and 27.9 points per game. The 2003 season has

been a memorable one for Knight, as he averages 133.2 rushing yards

per game and has totaled 1,599 on the year. With 26 receptions, he

has proven there is more to him than his ground game – he also

averages 18.9 receiving yards per game and accumulating 152.2 yards

of total offense per contest.

Those numbers not only lead the Big East Conference, but also

ranked him No. 3 in rushing in the nation. He rushed for 197 yards

when the Eagles knocked off then-No. 12 Virginia Tech and became

Boston College’s all-time rushing leader with 3,603 career rushing

yards.

CSU head coach Sonny Lubick is a keeping the strength of the

Eagle’s running game in mind as he prepares his team for the San

Francisco Bowl.

“Boston College is a solid team. They are going to be physical

and try to run the ball,” Lubick said. “They have a very good

running back and are sound all the way around.”

CSU has been fairly successful at stopping the run this season,

only giving up 156.1 yards on the ground per game. Twice they have

held teams to less than 100 yards rushing when California ran for

51yards and Weber State ran for 79 yards.

A weakness in the Rams’ run defense was exposed against New

Mexico, as Lobos’ running back DonTrell Moore racked up 242 yards

with three touchdowns. His numbers contributed to the 319 rushing

yards the Lobos gained on the ground in their 37-34 victory.

Knight has staged similar performances, accumulating a

career-high 224 and three touchdowns in a 35-25 victory over

Rutgers and 175 yards and one touchdown in a 53-29 win over Ball

State.

Games like those provide evidence that running backs can win

games by shutting down opposing defenses. If the Rams plan on

getting back on the winning track in bowl games after last year’s

embarrassing 17-3 loss to Texas Christian, one thing is certain:

they must find a hole in Knight’s suit of armor.