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Running backs of all size, strength and speed stepping up in postseason

By Joe Davidson, Sac Bee, 11/19/14, 7:30AM PST

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In preparing for running backs large and powerful or diminutive and fast, Elk Grove High School coach Chris Nixon learned his defense didn’t need a warning.

It was already in tune with what was chugging down the tracks.

Be it Beau Bisharat of Jesuit, DeShawn Collins of Grant or Trey Nahhas of Monterey Trail, Elk Grove braced for a battle in Delta League play.

“The guys knew who was coming,” Nixon said. “They refer to those runners as Superman 1, Superman 2, Superman 3, and they all come with capes.”

The regular season saw impressive performances by running backs, and the trend has continued into the Sac-Joaquin Section playoffs. Nixon doesn’t have just one running back at his disposal. He has three and admits to being “a bit spoiled” with the breakaway ability of Eltoro Allen and the might of Manny Scott-Anderson and Spencer Sheff. Allen had 184 yards and two touchdowns on five carries in a 69-7 rout of Vintage in a Division II playoff opener Friday.

“It’s an up year for running backs,” Nixon said. “You feel good having one of these guys.”

Bisharat, a 6-foot-2, 205-pound junior, is a mix of strength and burst. He ran for 309 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries in Jesuit’s 27-0 D-I opening-round victory over Gregori of Modesto.

Collins, an explosive 5-8, 170-pound junior, rushed for 273 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries in Grant’s 42-23 victory over Patterson in a D-II opener. The previous week, he ran for 275 yards and four scores against Jesuit as the Pacers won the Delta title.

Nahhas, a quick, strong 6-1, 190-pound senior, ran for 242 yards and two touchdowns on 35 carries as Monterey Trail beat Cosumnes Oaks 29-28 in D-I action.

In D-III, 5-10, 180-pound junior Colby Carrera of Vista del Lago rushed for 211 yards and four touchdowns on 34 carries to rally the Eagles past American Canyon 42-28. And in D-V, Colfax’s Tim Rawlins, a 5-10, 185-pound senior, ran for 172 yards and four touchdowns on 22 carries in a 42-35 win over Summerville.

The most impressive playoff outing belonged to Marcel Brown of Rio Linda. The 5-10, 205-pound senior raced for 349 yards and five touchdowns on 19 carries in a 62-51 D-III victory over Placer.

A closer look

▪ Bisharat of Jesuit and Nahhas of Monterey Trail run with fury, their coaches say. Bisharat, generating recruiting interest from Pacific-12 Conference teams, worked on his body and game in the offseason, including squats, “to get some power to launch my body into others.”

“I love playing this position,” said Bisharat, who has rushed for 1,651 yards and 23 touchdowns, including scoring runs of 94, 83 (twice), 71, 70 and 59 yards. “Every time I get the ball, you want to break free and think, ‘Going to the house.’”

Said Elk Grove’s Sheff, also a linebacker, “You feel it when Bisharat hits you.”