NEU » rdinator.He can run inside and

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Notre Dame coach Muffet McGraw figures top-ranked Connecticut is going to provide the best possible measuring stick to see just how good her second-ranked Fighting Irish are.We need to see where we are. We havent really played a great game, McGraw said Tuesday.Voters in The Associated Press womens basketball poll moved the Huskies (7-0) ahead of Irish (8-0) on Monday, marking the first time 11 years a team lost the top ranking without actually losing a game. The Irish say theyre not concerned.Rankings really dont matter, its really about the best team wins, Irish guard Marina Mabrey said.McGraw said two months ago that this season should be more open in womens basketball because the Huskies looked more vulnerable. The Huskies eked out a 78-76 win over Florida State to open the season, but since then have had little trouble.Notre Dame has outscored opponents 85.8 to 54 on average so far this season, while the Huskies have outscored opponents 81 to 56.9. The Huskies have the more impressive victories with four over Top 25 opponents while the Irish have one.The Irish will have the crowd behind them Wednesday night, which UConn coach Geno Auriemma said will be a challenge.Were going to have to match that. Theyre deep, have a lot of players. Were not so (deep) right now, he said.Auriemma said he was looking forward to preparing his team to face the Irish.Thats still one of my favorite things to do, he said.The rivalry has grown into the best in womens college basketball, although its been a bit one-sided the past four seasons. The Huskies have won five straight, dating back to beating the Irish 83-65 in an NCAA Tournament semifinal in 2013. Before that, the Irish had won seven of eight.The difference this time around is the Huskies wont have Breanna Stewart, who led the Huskies to four consecutive national championships.They dont have a great player, McGraw said. They dont have that one player like Stewart that can just take over the entire game. I think they have balance -- probably more balance than theyve ever had. You have to guard everybody.McGraw contends the pressure is on the Huskies, who have won 82 straight.Theyve got to keep that going, with however many games theyve won in a row, McGraw said. Theyre No. 1 now, so its a little bit like it was in the past.McGraw said trying to regain the top ranking wont be a motivating factor for the Irish.I dont think were going out to prove a point in that way, McGraw said. But I think were certainly looking at it as a great test for us to see who is No. 1.Adrian Amos Super Bowl Jersey . But the quarterback hopes to stay involved in football after officially calling it quits Tuesday. "Id love to look at those opportunities as they arise," Pierce said in an interview from his Winnipeg eatery. Marquez Valdes-Scantling Super Bowl Jersey . -- Charline Labonte couldnt have asked for a better homecoming. http://www.packersonlineteamstore.com/davante-adams-youth-jersey.html . -- Chicago Bears cornerback Tim Jennings was selected Monday to his second straight Pro Bowl, while guard Kyle Long made it after a solid rookie season. Montravius Adams Super Bowl Jersey .Y. -- Syracuse has turned up the defence at the right time all season, and when High Point threatened to pull off a monumental upset the second-ranked Orange did what they do best with their quick hands and savvy play. Billy Turner Super Bowl Jersey . Wilson hit Schenn from behind during Tuesday nights game in Philadelphia, earning a five-minute major for charging and a game misconduct. He has a phone hearing with the department of player safety, which limits any potential suspension to five or fewer games.When FBS recruiters visited Las Vegas to evaluate tailback Donnel Pumphrey in 2012, they told then-Canyon Springs High School coach Hunkie Cooper the same things.Hes a really good football player, they would say. But hes too small, and hell never hold up.But Cooper, who is now in his second season as San Diego States receivers coach, believed he knew what a good football player looked like, regardless of his size. At 5-foot-9 and 190 pounds, Cooper played 13 seasons in the Arena Football League and was voted one of the leagues greatest players.Cooper also coached former Oklahoma star DeMarco Murray as an assistant coach at Bishop Gorman High in Las Vegas, and he believed Pumphrey, despite his 5-foot-9, 175-pound frame, was even better than Murray.But after several coaches from the Big 12 and Pac-12 declined to offer Pumphrey a scholarship, Cooper called San Diego State offensive coordinator/running backs coach Jeff Horton, who was one of his position coaches at UNLV in 1989-90.Coach Horton is like a father figure to me, Cooper said. I told him Pump was one of the best players Id ever coached and he had an upside. Coach Horton agreed to take him, and the rest is history.On Saturday, Pumphrey will try to make history by becoming the all-time leading rusher in the FBS. He needs 108 yards against Houston in the Las Vegas Bowl presented by Geico (3:30 p.m. ET on ABC) to break former Wisconsin star Ron Daynes FBS career record of 6,397 yards.It would mean a lot to break the record because of all the work my team put in, Pumphrey said. It would mean a lot to have my name at the top. Its a great honor.Heisman Trophy winners Archie Griffin, Herschel Walker, Charles White, Tony Dorsett and Ricky Williams were among the legendary players Pumphrey passed this season on the FBS rushing list.I think it hit when I passed Tony Dorsett, Pumphrey said. Thats a legend right there. I never thought Id be in the same position with those guys.Dayne, the 1999 Heisman Trophy winner, actually rushed for 7,125 yards on 1,220 carries in 47 games with the Badgers from 1996 to 1999, but the NCAA didnt begin including statistics from postseason games in its official records until 2002. Dayne ran for a whopping 728 yards combined in four bowl games.Entering Saturdays game against the Cougars, Pumphrey has gained 6,290 yards on 1,040 carries in 53 games. Dayne averaged 5.8 yards per carry during his four-year college career; Pumphrey has averaged 6.0.In fact, Pumphrey would actually rank No. 3 in career rushing if postseason statistics were included for all players. He needs 237 yards against Houston to move past Dorsett for the No. 2 spot bbehind Dayne; Dorsett gained 6,526 yards at Pitt from 1973 to 1976, including bowl games.ddddddddddddid I know hed be in the top two to ever play in the FBS? Cooper asked. No. Earl Campbell, Eric Dickerson and Tony Dorsett, those are my guys. When I heard those names roll off the list, I knew Pump was special. Hes the real deal.Its not like Pumphrey has anything left to prove. He is the only player in FBS history to have 5,000 yards rushing and 1,000 receiving in his career, and hes first among active players with 7,374 all-purpose yards, 61 rushing touchdowns and 33 100-yard games.What was even more impressive the past four seasons was Pumphreys durability, especially considering his smallish size. He had at least 275 carries in each of the past three seasons and seemed to get better late in the game.I try to make guys miss as much as possible, Pumphrey said. When its time to go down, its time to go down. I dont try to drag guys too far. My offensive line has done a great job, and Ive had some really good fullbacks.This season, Pumphrey averaged 5.4 yards per carry in the first quarter and 7.7 in the fourth. He averaged 5.2 yards on first down and 8.9 on third.Thats the way hes trained, Cooper said. Its his football IQ. He might run a zone play in the first quarter and then run it in the second quarter the other way, because he saw something others would never see. Guys arent going to hit him flush. His film study, his vision and his natural ability arent going to allow guys to hit him square.Colorado State coach Mike Bobo, whose Rams held Pumphrey to a season-low 53 yards on 18 carries in a 63-31 win over the Aztecs on Nov. 26, said hes among the best runners he has seen. Bobo coached Los Angeles Rams tailback Todd Gurley and Nick Chubb as Georgias offensive coordinator.He can run inside and out, Bobo said. He can catch the ball out of the backfield. Hes physical and can break one outside and take it to the house. Hes not very big, but they run power-O with him. Hes an I-formation back and gets 30 carries a game. I think hes a competitor, and he loves ball. He runs like it.Breaking Daynes record in his hometown, with much of his family and many of his friends watching, would be a fitting end to Pumphreys college career.It would mean a lot for him, Cooper said. A lot of people knew this kid had talent in Pop Warner leagues and high school. It would be great for him to do it in front of a lot of people who have been instrumental in his life, especially his mother and his daughter. ' ' '