Humble Perine Closing in on History

Billy Sims. Joe Washington. Adrian Peterson. Steve Owens.

They are some of the best to ever don the Crimson and Cream and some of the best to ever play running back in college football history. Combined they have won two Heisman trophies and been named a unanimous All-American five times.

And come Monday night in the Allstate Sugar Bowl, Sooners junior running back Samaje Perine could pass all of them to become the top rusher in Oklahoma football history. With 4,036 yards in his career, Perine needs six yards to pass Owens for fourth place, 10 to move ahead of Peterson for third, 36 to vault Washington for second and 83 to supplant Sims atop the all-time OU rushing list.

Perine enters the contest with a team-high average of 108.2 yards per contest, so the milestone is within his reach. Just don't ask him to think about the record too much at this point. Personal glory has never been something he has pursued. For Perine, it's about the team and doing what he can to get the win.

For example, did you know that Perine would rather pick up a blitz than score a touchdown? It's true.

“I take more pride in blocking than in running the ball because I know how important it is.” - Samaje Perine

“I take more pride in blocking than in running the ball because I know how important it is,” he said. “Sometimes it gets overlooked by those on the outside. They see the touchdowns and the catches, but they overlook one of the most important aspects and that's blocking for the quarterback so he can throw the ball and the receiver can make that spectacular catch.

“Blocking has always been big for me and that's been one of the things I've worked on the most in my game. I'm still improving, but I can see a drastic change from when I started to now.”

Perine has never been one to seek out the limelight. He thinks it may have something to do with his shy personality, but he's never liked the attention.

“I've always wanted to push the fame to other people,” he explained. “I don't know why but I just don't like being the center of attention. I just like to win. Whether I'm a big part of that or not, I just like to win. For me to sit here and say, 'Oh, I was such a big part of this win or that win,' that's not what I do.

“I just like to see the team happy and celebrating after a big win.”

Of course, avoiding the spotlight poses a bit of a problem when you're on the verge of history. Or, if you're Perine, you make college football history before your freshman season is even over.

The Road to 427

Perine made his way to Oklahoma from Pflugerville, Texas, and Hendrickson High School. A four-star recruit by most, he chose OU because it felt like family as soon as he got to Norman.

“I didn't know anyone and was still getting a feel for the coaches, but I could already feel it was a close-knit family here and that was one of the biggest things I was looking for and I really liked that aspect of the program,” he explained.

Before arriving, he spoke with his mom and he confided in her that he didn't know what to expect for his freshman season. Oklahoma had just seen the departures of Brennan Clay and Damien Williams, who combined for 289 of the 391 rushing attempts (74 percent) and 1,510 of the 2,107 rushing yards (72 percent) by OU running backs the prior season.

The opportunity would be there to get carries, so his mom told him to go in with a free heart and to not have any expectations because no one knew what could happen. Perine followed that advice, kept his head down and continued to work hard.

The 2014 season started with a timeshare between Perine, Keith Ford and Alex Ross in the backfield. Through the first three games, Ford, who is now at Texas A&M, had a team-high 34 carries for 194 yards, while Perine (32 for 177) and Ross, now at Missouri, (21 for 132) followed behind him.

Ford suffered an injury in the team's third game of a season, a 34-10 win over Tennessee, knocking him out of action for five weeks. That gave Perine a chance to showcase himself.

“To start out the season, Keith, he was doing great and then he went down with an unfortunate injury,” Perine said. “I feel like that was an opportunity for me to step in and pick up where he left off. I feel like I did a pretty good job of that. It's been carrying me ever since.”

That first opportunity came the following week at West Virginia in front of a national audience on FOX. It was a heck of an introduction and a sign of things to come as Perine carried the ball 34 times against the Mountaineers and racked up 242 rushing yards (13th most in OU history) and four rushing touchdowns in a 45-33 win.

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If the performance catapulted Perine to the top of the depth chart and caused some people in the Big 12 to take notice, it was his outing seven games later that forced the college football world to turn its attention toward Norman.

Nov. 22, 2014, saw the Sooners host the Kansas Jayhawks. The game itself was delayed an hour and 35 minutes due to lightning, while the game-time temperature stood at 54 degrees with winds at 22 miles per hour and a steady rain falling. The conditions were not ideal to pass the ball, so Perine knew the OU attack would feature plenty of running.

What happened over the next 60 minutes had never been seen before in college football. Perine ran for 427 yards and five touchdowns on 34 carries, setting the single-game FBS rushing yardage record that still stands. He ran for 61 yards in the first quarter, 161 in the second, 156 in the third and 49 in the fourth. His touchdowns runs averaged 41.8 yards, and he didn't play the game's final 12:16.

He became the first player ever to run for more than 200 yards in each half of a game. He broke the OU single-game mark of 294 yards by Greg Pruitt over the second and third quarters alone. It was the seventh best rushing performance in the history of college football at any level.

So what does Perine remember most about that day?

"It was the most horrible, best day ever. That's the best way I can put it."

“Holes wider than what I needed,” he said with a laugh. “Just that whole day with how things panned out with the terrible weather and the need for a great day running the football. It was the most horrible, best day ever. That's the best way I can put it.”

But before Perine can take any credit for himself, he is quick to point out how none of it would have happened without his offensive line that day: Tyrus Thompson at left tackle, Adam Shead at left guard, Ty Darlington at center, Nila Kasitati at right guard and Daryl Williams at right tackle.

“It was probably the best performance by an offensive line that I've ever run behind,” Perine said. “The dominance that they showed in that game, it was awesome. It made my job literally the easiest job in the world that day. It was an unbelievable performance by them.

“I love those guys and I still try to keep in contact with them today. I was so proud of them that day and they don't even know the half of it just because I won't tell them because I don't like to talk that much. I was extremely proud of them that day.”

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Perine finished the year with 1,713 rushing yards, the second most in OU history for a freshman, and his 21 rushing touchdowns were the most ever by a freshman in Big 12 history. He was named the conference's offensive freshman of the year and was named a second-team All-American by the Football Writers Association of America.

He followed that debut season with another 1,349 yards as a sophomore and 16 more touchdowns, earning honorable mention All-America recognition from Sports Illustrated. He made it to 2,000 and 3,000 rushing yards faster than any player in Bob Stoops' tenure. But again, don't ask Perine to talk about those first two years too in-depth.

“Honestly I haven't had time to reflect on any of these past few years I've been here,” he said. “It's just been going by so fast and I'm just trying to soak it all in and I'm in year three. It'll be good to look back on it when I do look back, but like I said, it's been going by so fast I haven't really had time to sit down and reflect on how good of a freshman and sophomore campaign that I had.”

Adjusting to Change

Though Perine turned out another stellar season as a sophomore, it was a year full of changes for him. He had a new position coach (Jay Boulware), new offensive coordinator (Lincoln Riley), new quarterback (Baker Mayfield) and a new partner in the backfield (Joe Mixon).

Perine spent his freshman season with Cale Gundy as his running backs coach, but a shuffle on the staff brought Boulware to the front of the RB meeting room.

“I've been with Coach Boulware longer and he's a guy that's not going to micro-manage what you do,” Perine said. “He's going to let you be an athlete and let you run. He's going to get you to the point of attack, which is what he always says, but it's true. After the handoff, he's basically hands off.”

But remember that quote before about how Perine prefers blocking to scoring? Boulware has had a significant impact in that area.

“He was a former offensive lineman so he knows some of the tricks, like pad level,” said the 5-10, 235-pounder. “I feel like that's been the most help for me because that's what I needed to work on the most and that's what I'd like to continue to improve on is the passing game. Anyone can run the ball and find a hole, but not everyone can pass block and be efficient at it.

“That's one of the big things that helped me the most with him is being able to pass block and use leverage. Being shorter with shorter arms, he taught me that pad level is everything. It doesn't matter how big someone is or how long their arms are; if you get under their pads you can move them. That's probably been one of the most helpful things anyone has ever told me. I still thank him to this day for that.”

When Riley entered the picture prior to 2015 from East Carolina with a known pass-heavy attack, no one was quite sure how the running game would factor. But now with nearly two years of evidence, it's clear the running back role would be a huge part of Riley's offense.

“He's been amazing,” Perine said. “Just his attention to detail. For me personally, I didn't really catch the ball much my first year or in high school, and just to have him implement this offense but still keep the running game and also get us out into space where we can catch the ball, that aspect of my game has been improved tremendously. I have him to thank for that.”

Perine also described Riley as 'a genius' and 'one of the smartest football guys I've ever met in my life.' It boils down to the way he make simple things look complex and vice versa.

“Just the things he can do to base plays that we have to make it look different and get us into space in different ways, it's amazing,” Perine said. “And just him as a person, he's a genuinely great guy.”

In any order, Perine lists Durron Neal, Devante Bond and Sterling Shepard as his favorite teammates he's had at OU. Oh, and you can add Baker Mayfield to that list, as well.

“He always has a smile on his face, is full of energy and is always making jokes,” Perine said of Mayfield. “He just makes it enjoyable when we've been going at it in summer camp for a few days straight and people are down, tired and want a little break. He's always there to lighten the mood. We know it's a grind and we know he's tired and wants a break as well, but he won't show it. That just makes it more enjoyable for us and makes it a little easier for us to get through it and keep grinding and keep working hard.

“He's such a competitor and always wants to win in everything he does. When facing the defense and the scout team, he always wants to win and that makes it more fun for us to just go out and want to win as badly as he does.”

Call them the 'odd couple', but Perine and Mixon are the perfect complement to one another."

For the better part of the last two seasons, Perine has shared the backfield with Mixon. You can call them the 'odd couple' for the noticeably different personalities. Perine is quiet and reserved, leading by example. Mixon is louder and more outgoing, a vocal presence on the sideline. But there is no rivalry between the two. In fact, they feed off one another.

“Once he makes a big play then I come around and make a big play,” Perine explained. “We give each other energy. When one of us scores and comes to the sideline, the other is the first to come and give a high-five or chest bump. It's just cool. I've never really had someone like that where we play the same position but are pretty much the best of friends. I can't speak enough of our relationship and have someone like that by my side.

“When Joe comes you can hear the passion in his voice and it just makes it that much more easy to go out on the next series and play hard. He loves to get people riled up and get people ready to play. He comes to the sideline after a good play, bad play, and he's fist-bumping the o-line and receivers. He gets everyone up when they get down and that's what you need to have a successful team.”

The Kneel-Down

It's not easy to sum Samaje Perine's time in Norman so far. His records, accolades and accomplishments are too lengthy to list. But one could look to this year's Bedlam game to see how much he thinks of others before he thinks of himself.

Oklahoma was leading Oklahoma State, 38-20, and was less than a minute away from winning an unprecedented 10th Big 12 championship. The Sooners faced a 4th-and-1 at the OSU 11, looking to move the chains and ice the game. Perine took the handoff from Mayfield, burst up the middle and found nothing but green grass and an easy path to the end zone in front of him. But when Perine approached the two-yard line, he stopped and took a knee.

It would have been easy to keep running and get his 12th rushing touchdown of the season. So what was going through Perine's mind? His teammates.

“I saw a clear path to the end zone, but what was the point?”

“We were up a couple scores and didn't have that much time left on the clock, so why score and have our kickoff team go back on the field and our defense back on the field when you can just end the game right there and have that be that?”

Record in Sight

Perine needs 83 yards to have the spotlight shine solely on him. But that's not what he's thinking about right now. He's just thinking about what he needs to do to help Oklahoma beat Auburn. He's putting the team before himself, just like he always has.

“Right now, just because I'm trying to get ready for this game and another great opponent, it doesn't really mean as much to me as I think it will down the road sometime,” he said. “Just to be mentioned with great running backs like that, it's a huge deal. But I don't really like talking about it just because that's not who I am. I'm not looking for that kind of attention for myself.

“It's a big deal, but regardless of whether I get it or not, I won't talk about it all too much because I'm not looking for the individual accolades as much as the team win.”

The Road to 427

Adjusting to Change

The Kneel-Down

“I saw a clear path to the end zone, but what was the point?”

Record in Sight

Players Mentioned

Baker Mayfield

Joe Mixon

Samaje Perine

Sponsors

University of Oklahoma Athletics