Sophomore does a Little bit of everything for Kentucky

Posted 10:13PM on Thursday 29th September 2005 ( 19 years ago )

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) Rafael Little has been on the football field so much for Kentucky this season that sometimes coach Rich Brooks loses track. During one of his weekly news conferences, Brooks was asked about Little, the Wildcats' starting tailback, adding kick return duties to a growing list of responsibilities. Brooks started gushing about Little's talent. ``He needs to have the ball in his hands,'' Brooks said. ``He's a playmaker, throwing it, running it, catching it.'' Then Brooks caught himself: ``We're going to have to have him throw a few, too,'' the coach joked or at least it seemed that way. Throwing passes is one of the few things Little hasn't done this season for Kentucky (1-3, 0-1 Southeastern Conference). The 5-11, 195-pound sophomore from Anderson, S.C., is the team's leading rusher with 340 yards and two touchdowns, and his 85-yard per-game average ranks fourth in the SEC. His 14 catches are a team high, and his 118 receiving yards rank third on the team. Kentucky has run 177 offensive plays this season, and Little has touched the football on 77 of them, or 43.5 percent. ``His touches will go up if we are able to get more snaps,'' Brooks said. ``He obviously is a playmaker. People we're playing know that as well.'' Because of injuries to other players, Little has also become a regular in the kick-return rotation. He's averaging 21 yards on his four punt returns, which would lead the SEC if he had enough returns to qualify in that category. His only kickoff return of the season provided the Wildcats with their season's highlight thus far the 99-yard fourth-quarter runback proved to be the winning touchdown against Idaho State. ``I was hoping I'd run it back, but I was thinking they were going to catch me,'' Little said. ``I just wanted to make something happen. I wanted to win so bad, so I did what I had to do to get to the end zone.'' Little leads the SEC in all-purpose yards, averaging 160.2 per game 20 yards more than the next player on the list, Felix Jones of Arkansas. ``I'll just do anything,'' Little said. ``I just want to be on the field. Anything that will get me out there, I'll do.'' Heavily recruited after a prep career in which he scored 90 touchdowns, Little picked Kentucky over schools like Nebraska, Tennessee, Georgia, South Carolina and Clemson, citing as a major factor the chance to contribute immediately for the Wildcats. A knee injury during the preseason last year briefly sidelined Little, but he worked his way into the rotation and became the starter for the Wildcats' final three games thanks in good part to his versatility. As a freshman, he rushed for 265 yards and one touchdown and caught 12 passes for 136 yards and another score, and returned three kickoffs and six punts. Entering this season, Little figured to compete with fellow sophomore Tony Dixon for the job as starting tailback. When Dixon suffered a season-ending injury before the season opener, Little knew Brooks and Kentucky's other coaches would expect more of him. ``I know we've got other backs,'' Little said, ``but I think they wanted to see me run and see how I would do. I just do what they tell me to do. Wherever they want me, I'll try my best.'' In the season opener, Little reeled off a 51-yard run against Louisville, which caught the attention of one of his linemen. ``If we just get in front of people, he's going to make us look good by breaking off a nice run,'' center Matt McCutchan said. ``In the Louisville game, he didn't need much. He just needed a little crease. He got in there and took off. He's got the speed so that he can definitely break away in the SEC.'' Little said one of his goals is to become Kentucky's first 1,000-yard rusher since Artose Pinner in 2002 and only the seventh in Kentucky history. ``I've just got to keep running now and break some records,'' Little said. ``Even if I don't break them, I just want to be up there.'' (Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

http://accesswdun.com/article/2005/9/124881