Sooner Memories: OU’s Perine Goes for 427 and NCAA Rushing Record

OU’s Perine Goes for 427  NCAA Rushing Record 
 by Fred Pahlke | Posted FRED PAHLKE.COM on Saturday, November 22nd, 2014

Wisconsin’s Melvin Gordon’s one week old record of 408 yards rushing lasted on week as Oklahoma’s Samaje Perine ground up Kansas today in the tune of 427 yards in 34 carries breaking the NCAA FBS rushing record.  The Sooners took the Jayhawks to the wood shed with a 44-7 win in front of 84, 908 on Owen Field at Gaylord Family Memorial Stadium.  Perine totaled 5 scores with TD runs of 49, 33, 34, 66 and 27 yards.  His 42 yard scamper early  (12.16) in the 4th quarter gave him the record.  It was his last of the day.

“It’s still surreal,” Perine said. “I just looked at it as doing what I had to do to help my team. I’m not really feeling special in any type of way.”

Perine is becoming a much beloved team-mate for the Sooners.  Hoisted up on their shoulders after the historic run on hollowed ground (Billy Vessels, Billy Sims, Steve Owens all Heisman winners called that field home, not to mention greats Joe Washington, Greg Pruitt, Adrian Peterson and Clendon Thomas) Perine has now become another of the great Sooner running backs that have rewrote the record books of NCAA football.  Perine broke Greg Pruitt’s school record of 296 yards.

“This is really awesome that he goes down in the record books,” Oklahoma center Ty Darlington said. “He’s such a team player. What people won’t see is he’s covering kickoffs, he’s blocking for other guys who don’t have the ball. He plays so hard every play, and he’s such a humble guy.”

Sufice to say, Coach Bob Stoops has shown his pleasure in the 19 year old from Phuggerville, TX, a suburb of Austin.  A mature young man in both body and intelligence, Perine has been allowed to speak to the media during press conferences, something that is not allowed freshmen on many college teams. A straight A student in the classroom, Perine has been compared to Texas great Earl Campbell with his power and running style.  Perine goes just under 6′ and comes in around 243 lbs.  Today he showed the ability to run away from defenders with a continued ability to punish them with extreme physicality.

Running backs coach Cale Gundy gave Perine the option to come out of the game if he so chose but the true freshman was content to bash the Kansas line.

“He (Gundy) overheard other people on the sideline saying I needed this amount of yards, and I went over and told him I really don’t care,” Perine said. “I just want to play the next play, but if you want another guy in there, he can go in there and try to get us some yards.”

Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops was not going to pull Perine once they became aware that he was closing in on records.

“The guy is just so exceptional in everything that he does,” Stoops said. “We were thinking about resting him, and then someone said he only needs 35 more yards, and you know, that’s just too close not to do it, and there’s too much time left in the game

Feature Photo Credit:  Nov 22, 2014; Norman, OK, USA; Oklahoma Sooners running back Samaje Perine (32) runs for a touchdown against the Kansas Jayhawks during the first half at Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. (Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports) 

Third Photo Credit:  Oklahoma’s Samaje Perine, right, is lifted up by his teammates in the fourth quarter, after breaking the NCAA FBS single-game rushing record of 408 yards, set last week by Melvin Gordon, with 427 yards in an NCAA college football game against Kansas in Norman, Okla., Saturday, Nov. 22, 2014. Oklahoma won 44-7. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)