Chariot of fire

  • Scott M. Johnson / Herald Writer
  • Sunday, November 11, 2001 9:00pm
  • Sports

Seahawks’ Alexander sets team record with 266 yards rushing in pivotal win over Raiders

By Scott M. Johnson

Herald Writer

SEATTLE — The running joke inside the Seattle Seahawks’ locker room this year has been that cornerback Shawn Springs could give running back Shaun Alexander a 3-yard start and still catch him from behind.

Not after Sunday.

Alexander did a whole lot of running, and the Seahawks proved that they’re no joke.

Alexander set team records with 266 rushing yards and an 88-yard touchdown run in a nationally-televised game Sunday night. His Bo Jackson-like performance led the Seahawks to an improbable 34-27 win over the AFC West-leading Oakland Raiders.

"I can’t call him slow now," Springs said afterward. "He must be cruising in practice, but he sure busted out tonight."

Alexander showed his burst of speed during the 88-yard run, which gave the Seahawks the lead for good and represented just one of his three second-half touchdowns Sunday. Alexander took advantage of a perfectly-run play to break into the Oakland backfield, then outran three Oakland defenders before diving into the end zone.

"The biggest thing I’ve learned from everybody is to trust your speed. They’re like, ‘You’re in the pros, so you must be fast,’" Alexander said. "I was thinking that (Springs) was going to be on me all week if they caught me, so I was like, ‘I have to score.’ I looked up at the Jumbotron and said, ‘Man, I’m going to score.’"

Alexander’s rushing total is 59 yards more than the former record of 207 yards Curt Warner put up in 1983, and represents the fourth-highest one-game total in NFL history. He is also the first Seahawks running back in nearly six years to score three rushing touchdowns in a single game.

"I woke my roommate (fullback Heath Evans) up singing gospel music this morning," Alexander said. "I was like, ‘I feel so good today, I don’t know what’s going to happen.’ He was like, ‘You’re going to go off today.’ And it just happened. The line played well, and it worked out."

Alexander ran for 192 yards on 18 carries in the second half alone, and all three of his touchdowns came at opportune moments.

Alexander’s first TD, a 6-yard run on a draw play, tied the score at 20 in the third quarter. He broke the 88-yarder on the first play of the next drive to give the Seahawks a 27-20 lead, then added some insurance with seven minutes to go in the game.

Oakland (6-2) cut the lead to 34-27 with 3:40 remaining, then got the ball back for one final drive. But a fateful screen pass call by head coach Jon Gruden at the Seattle 47 eventually allowed the clock to run out on the Raiders’ comeback hopes.

Afterward, Gruden couldn’t help but feel shell-shocked.

"I don’t know if that was Alexander or Jim Brown," he said. "If you’re asking me, he’s good. He’s real good, man, real good."

Even Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren unleashed some praise on his young running back.

"I don’t think you can change (Alexander) too much," Holmgren said. "He thinks he’s pretty good, and he is. I temper my enthusiasm to help him keep his feet on the ground. But he was marvelous. He had a really good game.

"But he has to do it game after game, year after year."

Alexander’s inconsistency this season is a microcosm of the team. The Seahawks (4-4) have now beaten Denver, Cleveland, Jacksonville and Oakland, while getting blown out in three other games. The low point came last week, when the lowly Washington Redskins ran all over Seattle en route to an easy win.

How that Seahawks team turned into this team in just one week is the eighth wonder of the world.

"We can’t be a roller coaster like we’ve been before," middle linebacker Levon Kirkland said. "It was time to step it up, and today we did."

From the outset, this Seattle team looked nothing like the one that showed up — or, more appropriately, didn’t show up — last week at Washington. The Seahawks drove down the field against a hobbled Raiders defense on their opening possession, but stalled at Oakland’s 15-yard line and had to settle for a field goal.

In fact, each of the first three possessions of the game culminated in field goals, as Seattle took a 6-3 lead.

The Raiders got into the end zone first, scoring on Rich Gannon’s 4-yard throw to Tim Brown to give Oakland a 10-6 lead with 4:20 to go in the first half.

The Seahawks immediately responded, going 76 yards in nine plays without a third down as quarterback Matt Hasselbeck hit Darrell Jackson on a 9-yard touchdown pass. The play came with 20 seconds left in the second quarter, giving Seattle a 13-10 lead.

Momentum changed in a hurry when Oakland’s Terry Kirby returned the opening kickoff of the second half for a 90-yard touchdown, giving the Raiders a 17-13 lead. Oakland added a field goal before Alexander took over.

Of course, it wasn’t a one-man show. Alexander was quick to point out that the run blocking was as solid as it has been all season, especially on the 88-yarder.

"We challenged the line," Holmgren said, "and they came through today."

Said center Robbie Tobeck: "I don’t think he needed to, because we were challenged last week. But the fact that he did made it even more urgent."

Asked what kind of rewards the record-breaking performance brings to the offensive line, Tobeck just shrugged.

"Being an offensive lineman, you have to have the feeling of personal satisfaction and not worry about the frigging press clippings," Tobeck said, then added with a smirk: "But a Rolex would be nice."

Alexander’s reward for his performance is two more weeks as the starting running back. Veteran Ricky Watters is expected to be back for a Nov. 25 game at Kansas City, when Holmgren will have quite a decision to make.

"I have thought about it, but I haven’t made the decision," Holmgren said. "I really don’t want to make that one until I have to."

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