Ka’Deem Carey rushed for at least 115 yards in 10 of 13 games this season. Photo by Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Arizona Wildcats running back Ka’Deem Carey ended his sophomore season with the fifth-best rushing total in Pac-12 history.
Carey, who ran 28 times for 172 yards against Nevada in the New Mexico Bowl on Saturday, finished with 1,929 yards.
He leads the nation with 148.38 yards per game and should hold that advantage through the bowl season, although it’s not a lock.
His closest competitor — Michigan State’s Le’Veon Bell — would need 282 yards against TCU to move into the top spot. He has two games this season with more than 250 yards, including 266 in the regular-season finale against Minnesota.
Oregon’s Kenjon Barner, who went off for 321 yards at USC, can’t be ruled out, either. He needs 306 yards vs. Kansas State in the Fiesta Bowl to eclipse Carey.
With a school-record 23 rushing touchdowns, Carey is tied for fourth on the conference’s single-season list. Stanford’s Toby Gerhart leads the way with 28 rushing scores in 2009.
Below is a list of the league’s top five single-season rushers.
| Yards | Player, school | Year | Att. | Avg. | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2,427 | Marcus Allen, USC | 1981 | 433 | 5.6 | 23 |
| 2,050 | Charles White, USC | 1979 | 332 | 6.2 | 19 |
| 2,018 | J.J. Arrington, Cal | 2004 | 289 | 7.0 | 15 |
| 1,975 | Ricky Bell, USC | 1975 | 385 | 5.1 | 14 |
| 1,929 | Ka’Deem Carey, Arizona | 2012 | 303 | 6.4 | 23 |
(Although the NCAA does not include bowl games when compiling season and career stats from before the 2002 season, the Pac-12 has gone back and added those postseason stats to its record book. That is why, for example, you will see the Pac-12, but not the NCAA, include Charles White here as a 2,000-yard rusher.)