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When FBS recruiters visited Las Vegas to evaluate tailback Donnel Pumphrey in 2012, they told then-Canyon Springs High School coach Hunkie Cooper the same things.Hes a really good football player, they would say. But hes too small, and hell never hold up.But Cooper, who is now in his second season as San Diego States receivers coach, believed he knew what a good football player looked like, regardless of his size. At 5-foot-9 and 190 pounds, Cooper played 13 seasons in the Arena Football League and was voted one of the leagues greatest players.Cooper also coached former Oklahoma star DeMarco Murray as an assistant coach at Bishop Gorman High in Las Vegas, and he believed Pumphrey, despite his 5-foot-9, 175-pound frame, was even better than Murray.But after several coaches from the Big 12 and Pac-12 declined to offer Pumphrey a scholarship, Cooper called San Diego State offensive coordinator/running backs coach Jeff Horton, who was one of his position coaches at UNLV in 1989-90.Coach Horton is like a father figure to me, Cooper said. I told him Pump was one of the best players Id ever coached and he had an upside. Coach Horton agreed to take him, and the rest is history.On Saturday, Pumphrey will try to make history by becoming the all-time leading rusher in the FBS. He needs 108 yards against Houston in the Las Vegas Bowl presented by Geico (3:30 p.m. ET on ABC) to break former Wisconsin star Ron Daynes FBS career record of 6,397 yards.It would mean a lot to break the record because of all the work my team put in, Pumphrey said. It would mean a lot to have my name at the top. Its a great honor.Heisman Trophy winners Archie Griffin, Herschel Walker, Charles White, Tony Dorsett and Ricky Williams were among the legendary players Pumphrey passed this season on the FBS rushing list.I think it hit when I passed Tony Dorsett, Pumphrey said. Thats a legend right there. I never thought Id be in the same position with those guys.Dayne, the 1999 Heisman Trophy winner, actually rushed for 7,125 yards on 1,220 carries in 47 games with the Badgers from 1996 to 1999, but the NCAA didnt begin including statistics from postseason games in its official records until 2002. Dayne ran for a whopping 728 yards combined in four bowl games.Entering Saturdays game against the Cougars, Pumphrey has gained 6,290 yards on 1,040 carries in 53 games. Dayne averaged 5.8 yards per carry during his four-year college career; Pumphrey has averaged 6.0.In fact, Pumphrey would actually rank No. 3 in career rushing if postseason statistics were included for all players. He needs 237 yards against Houston to move past Dorsett for the No. 2 spot behind Dayne; Dorsett gained 6,526 yards at Pitt from 1973 to 1976, including bowl games.Did I know hed be in the top two to ever play in the FBS? Cooper asked. No. Earl Campbell, Eric Dickerson and Tony Dorsett, those are my guys. When I heard those names roll off the list, I knew Pump was special. Hes the real deal.Its not like Pumphrey has anything left to prove. He is the only player in FBS history to have 5,000 yards rushing and 1,000 receiving in his career, and hes first among active players with 7,374 all-purpose yards, 61 rushing touchdowns and 33 100-yard games.What was even more impressive the past four seasons was Pumphreys durability, especially considering his smallish size. He had at least 275 carries in each of the past three seasons and seemed to get better late in the game.I try to make guys miss as much as possible, Pumphrey said. When its time to go down, its time to go down. I dont try to drag guys too far. My offensive line has done a great job, and Ive had some really good fullbacks.This season, Pumphrey averaged 5.4 yards per carry in the first quarter and 7.7 in the fourth. He averaged 5.2 yards on first down and 8.9 on third.Thats the way hes trained, Cooper said. Its his football IQ. He might run a zone play in the first quarter and then run it in the second quarter the other way, because he saw something others would never see. Guys arent going to hit him flush. His film study, his vision and his natural ability arent going to allow guys to hit him square.Colorado State coach Mike Bobo, whose Rams held Pumphrey to a season-low 53 yards on 18 carries in a 63-31 win over the Aztecs on Nov. 26, said hes among the best runners he has seen. Bobo coached Los Angeles Rams tailback Todd Gurley and Nick Chubb as Georgias offensive coordinator.He can run inside and out, Bobo said. He can catch the ball out of the backfield. Hes physical and can break one outside and take it to the house. Hes not very big, but they run power-O with him. Hes an I-formation back and gets 30 carries a game. I think hes a competitor, and he loves ball. He runs like it.Breaking Daynes record in his hometown, with much of his family and many of his friends watching, would be a fitting end to Pumphreys college career.It would mean a lot for him, Cooper said. A lot of people knew this kid had talent in Pop Warner leagues and high school. It would be great for him to do it in front of a lot of people who have been instrumental in his life, especially his mother and his daughter.Giannis Antetokounmpo Bucks Jersey . -- An ugly goal by Nick Bonino helped the Anaheim Ducks overcome the defensive-minded Phoenix Coyotes on a night when their ragged power play continued to struggle. Vin Baker Bucks Jersey . -- Aldon Smith believes he is on the path to being sober for good. https://www.bucksrookiesshop.com/Frank-Mason-City-Edition-Jersey/ . Mickelson barely made the cut but had the best round of the day with nine birdies and an eagle coupled with two bogeys to sit two shots behind leader Craig Lee of Scotland. Lee shot a 69 for a 12-under 204 total. "I just love the fact I am in contention and have an opportunity in my first tournament of the year here in Abu Dhabi," Mickelson said. Luke Maye Bucks Jersey . Their experience showed Tuesday as the No. 10 Badgers blunted a Saint Louis surge to win 63-57 and advance to face West Virginia in Wednesdays finals of the Cancun Challenge. Glenn Robinson Jersey . LeBron James and Chris Bosh didnt need any more. Williams scored 11 points in 10 minutes, Alan Anderson scored 17 points, and the Brooklyn Nets finished the exhibition season with a 108-87 win over the Miami Heat on Friday night.ZHUKOVSKY, Russia -- Long jumper Ekaterina Koneva says shell cry. World hurdles champion Sergei Shubenkov says hell drown his sorrows.A day before a sports court rules on Russias appeal against the ban on its track and field team from the Olympics, star Russian athletes at a meet near Moscow pondered how they will react if they lose their case and cant go to Rio de Janeiro.What if we are not admitted, what do we do? asked Koneva, a world championship silver medalist who would be a contender for gold if allowed to go to Rio. I hope they will tell us something good.Shubenkov said: I will get drunk.The Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland will rule Thursday on an appeal filed by Russias Olympic track and field team of 68 athletes against a ban imposed by the sports world governing body, the IAAF, following allegations of state-sponsored doping and cover-ups.As it stands, the IAAF has approved just two Russians to compete, as neutral athletes, after they showed they had been training and living abroad under a robust drug testing regime. One is doping whistleblower Yulia Stepanova, the other is Florida-based long jumper Darya Klishina, who has received threats online from Russian fans who think she would betray her country by competing if the rest of the team is banned.Thursdays ruling is likely to weigh heavily on whether the International Olympic Committee could exclude the entire Russian team -- across all sports, not just track -- following new allegations of a vast state-sponsored doping program that covered many Olympic sports.Canadian lawyer Richard McLaren, who was commissioned by the World Anti-Doping Agency, issued a report Monday that accused Russias sports ministry of orchestrating a vast doping program that affected 28 summer and winter Olympic sports.The Russian appeal of the track ban was heard by a CAS panel on Tuesday in Geneva, with two-time Olympic pole vault champion Yelena Isinbayeva on hand to represent the athletes. IAAF President Sebastian Coe also attended the hearing.Two high-profile sports lawyers presented each side -- California-based Howard Jacobs for the Russians, British attorney Jonathan Taylor for the IAAF.TThe decision will be closely scrutinized by the IOC, which said Tuesday it would explore the legal options for a possible total ban on Russia but would wait until after the CAS ruling before making a final decision.dddddddddddd.If the IAAF ban is thrown out and the Russian track athletes are let back in, that would seemingly rule out the IOC imposing a blanket ban. If the ban is upheld, however, it would keep the option open.The uncertainty is weighing heavily on Russian athletes.It puts a lot of pressure on us, said Koneva, who herself once served a two-year doping ban.But the legal wrangling may not be over yet. Should the IOC then impose a total ban across all sports, Russian athletes -- though probably not the track and field team -- could conceivably appeal again to CAS.The case dates back to November, when the IAAF suspended Russias track and field federation following a World Anti-Doping Agency commission report that alleged systematic and state-backed doping in the country. The International Association of Athletics Federations upheld the ban last month, a decision accepted by the IOC.The Russian appeal questions the validity of the IAAF decision and seeks to ensure the participation in Rio of any Russian athlete who is not currently subject to any period of ineligibility for the commission of an anti-doping rule violation.The CAS case hinges on a central issue: Can all of the countrys track athletes be banned collectively and is it right to punish those who have not been accused of wrongdoing?In extending the ban, the IAAF said Russias entire drug-testing system had been corrupted and tainted and there was no way to prove which athletes were clean. Letting Russian athletes compete in the games would undermine the credibility of the competition, according to the IAAF.For now, Russias track athletes remain in limbo.Its very sad and frustrating, all these thoughts in our heads, Koneva said. But hope dies last.---Wilson reported from London. AP Sports Writer James Ellingworth in Moscow contributed to this report. ' ' '