Physics says that when a small object collides with a much
larger object, the larger object wins.
Try telling that to Stanford’s Jon Alston, a 6-foot-2,
195-pound linebacker, who met 5-foot-9, 177-pound running back
Tyler Ebell head-on in the hole. Alston managed to get his arms
around Ebell’s neck, only to be thrown off and watch the
diminutive running back streak towards the end zone for the
game-winning touchdown.
Jon Alston, meet Mighty Mouse.
“I guess you could say that it was a play that’s
been typical of my football career,” said Ebell, who has worn
the same Mighty-Mouse T-shirt underneath his jersey since he was a
freshman in high school. “I’ve always been able to
shrug off all the people who didn’t believe I could
play.”
Ebell got the nickname Mighty Mouse when he was much younger,
and it has stuck with him since. He sports the tattoo of the
cartoon superhero on his left bicep ““ a reward for getting on
the honor roll and rushing for over 1,000 yards during his freshman
year in high school. Repeatedly deemed too small for football,
Ebell took great thrill in proving doubters wrong.
“The best running backs aren’t tall; they’re
small,” Ebell said. “Look at Barry Sanders, Walter
Payton, Emmitt Smith. I’m just tired of hearing about my size
because I’ve proven I can play and that I am durable. I wish
people would just drop that label and just say, “˜He’s a
good player’ instead of saying, “˜He’s a good
player, but he’s little.'”
During his senior year in high school, Ebell rushed for 4,494
yards to set the national high school season record. Calls poured
in from Miami, Tennessee and each of the Pac-10 schools, but every
school ““ noting his lack of size ““ wanted to switch him
to wide receiver or defensive back.
Except UCLA.
“I told the other coaches that, if they weren’t
interested in me as a running back, don’t call,” Ebell
said. “UCLA said they’d give me a chance at running
back. It’s close to home (Ventura, Calif.), and I wanted to
stay close to home. There’s a good program here and a lot of
potential. I knew I could play at running back successfully in
college.”
Still, it took the Bruins one year and four games to give Ebell
the opportunity to prove himself. With experienced running backs
Manuel White and Akil Harris in front of him, Ebell was relegated
to punt return duties. Then, in UCLA’s first Pac-10 game at
Oregon State, White sustained a hamstring injury, Harris was
ineffective, and the Bruins found themselves down 14-0.
Mighty Mouse came to the rescue.
Ebell rushed for 209 yards on 29 carries leading the Bruins to a
crucial 43-35 victory.
“I was waiting for my time to come,” Ebell said.
“I knew that, as soon as I got my chance, I’d be able
to show people I could play and that I was capable of getting the
job done.”
And how.
In addition to his high-school hardware, Ebell has now set some
records at the collegiate level. He has reeled off five consecutive
100-yard rushing yard games ““ the longest streak by a
freshman in UCLA history, and just one shy of Gaston Green’s
all-time record of six games with more than 100 rushing yards. He
also holds the most number of rushing yards by a freshman running
back in UCLA history ““ all despite seeing scant action in the
team’s first four games of the season.
Ebell’s statistics could dwindle when White makes his
expected return against Arizona. Ebell, however, has no qualms
about sharing the rushing load.
“I’m excited Manuel’s coming back,” he
said. “We complement each other because he’s a big back
and I’m a small back. He can run over people and pound the
ball, and I can squeeze into holes and run around people.
We’ll be thunder and lightning.”
So Ebell figures to continue to enjoy what he’s been doing
““ making believers out of doubters.
The Bruins’ last opponent, the Washington Huskies, came
into the game giving up just 79.2 rushing yards a game. Ebell had
surpassed that total by halftime, finishing with 102 yards and
three touchdowns. Washington head coach Rick Neuheisel got to see
firsthand the player he recruited just two years ago as a wide
receiver or defensive back.
“He’s fantastic,” said Washington head coach
Rick Neuheisel, who didn’t believe that Ebell could play
tailback. “You always worry about smaller players because of
their durability, but here’s a guy who’s about 170
pounds and he carried the ball 39 times against Stanford.
He’s thrown all those questions about durability out the
window. He’s a proven commodity.”
Add Neuheisel to the list of converted believers.