Latimer
Continued from Page 3B
nior.
“It was just kind of a dream,”
Latimer says of his final season.
“As I was going on, the confi
dence kept building, and pretty
soon it just felt like I could do
anything. It was three months
later and I was like, man, I
rushed for 3,000 yards.”
In fact, his yardage total was
lOth-best all-time for high school
running backs nationally. Al
though he was eventually named
an all-American by BlueChip Il
lustrated after his senior season,
Latimer was feeling the pressure
of being a star before, during and
after his attempts to break the
records.
Latimer began to feel the heat
initially when people began
questioning the credibility of his
record during the season. Air
Academy had an infamous rush
ing attack, and Latimer was a
member of three consecutive
squads that ran for at least 3,000
yards.
“A lot of people thought I was
just getting a lot of carries, but
my sophomore year we rushed
for 3,000 yards as a team; it was
just spread between three other
tailbacks,” Latimer says. “Then
my junior year, I had about 1,500
yards and our other tailback had
about 1,600 yards. We had al
ways been rushing for 3,000
yards as a team, it just so hap
pened that I was the only back
that year.”
And what a year it was, as La
timer twice ran for six touch
downs and piled up at least 300
yards in a game six times. But as
the year progressed, the intensity
of approaching a state record be
gan to take its toll, and Latimer
entered the last game of the sea
son just three yards short of the
magical 3,000.
“I didn’t break the record until
the fourth quarter, and 1 had 30
something carries,” Latimer says.
“I just remember, probably about
the fourth quarter sometime, I
knew I hadn't broken it yet but I
didn’t know how many yards I
had. I was on the sidelines frus
trated, with tears in my eyes, and
was like, man. I’m never going to
do this.”
He did of course, and in the
((I’ve foreseen the
potential since he came
here, it's just that he
hasn 7 had the
opportunity. >>
Damon Griffin
U0 wide receiver
process earned himself a scholar
ship to Oregon. With the Ducks
facing the graduation of Dino
Philyaw in 1995 and the poten
tial loss of Ricky Whittle to the
NFL the following season, Duck
fans were more than happy to see
a 3,000-yard rusher amongst the
redshirts.
But with the addition of Mc
Cullough in 1996, Latimer faced
the prospect of spending two
years almost entirely on the
bench.
“A lot of guys come in with a
lot of hype, but he has to come
up and show he’s for real,” Ore
gon receiver Damon Griffin says.
“I think he just hasn’t had the op
portunity to show what he can
do. I’ve foreseen the potential
since he came here, it's just that
he hasn’t had the opportunity.”
Now, with Droughns out and
senior Kevin Parker sidelined
with a sprained ankle, Latimer
has a chance to show Oregon
fans what they were getting three
years ago.
“Derien is a strong runner, an
inside runner more than a pure
speed guy to the outside," Ore
gon head coach Mike Bellotti
says. “He has good stop-start
ability, he’s capable of breaking
tackles and he has a good burst of
speed through the hole. Those
are his strengths, plus he’s be
come a more accomplished re
ceiver, which I’m proud of."
But Latimer credits an even
greater strength as the key to his
success.
“So many stories in the Bible
talk about people having a time
plan for what God’s going to do
to our lives, and God has a time
frame, and it’s never the same,”
Latimer says. “God’s just taught
me to be patient, and whether
that means be patient until next
game or next year, I’m going to be
patient."
It appears Latimer’s patience
has paid off and that he’s
reached the end of his long road
to starting at Oregon.
“God’s given me a chance
now, and I’ve got to take advan
tage of it,” Latimer says. “You
wait for times like these.”
He might even prove that Ore
gon isn’t beginning the 1998 sea
son A.D.; they’ve just been play
ing in 1998 B.L.
That’s B.L. as in Before La
timer.
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