here is a nice in-depth look at Stanford's best running back, true frosh Toby Gerhart. he's obviously a humble, hard-working talented kid. so far, he's led Stanford in rushing in limited playing time in their first two games, which were sadly both losses. good luck to him this season!
Stanford counts on freshman
By Darren Sabedra
Mercury News
Not much about Toby Gerhart, Stanford's latest two-sport athlete, suggests that he is a freshman -- until he grins. The braces give him away.
But that aside, Gerhart already is showing that age hardly matters. In his first college game, Saturday at Oregon, he led the Cardinal in rushing.
It wasn't a brilliant performance -- 55 yards in 16 carries -- but Gerhart provided glimpses of the power and grit that made him a schoolboy legend in his hometown of Norco (Riverside County).
``It was kind of surreal,'' Todd Gerhart said of watching his son play on network television just three months removed from high school. ``I don't know how to explain it -- other than it was surreal.''
Surreal is a good way to describe Gerhart's résumé. In football, he finished his career at Norco High as the state's all-time leading rusher (9,622 yards) and was named Cal-Hi Sports' state player of the year. In baseball, Gerhart was ranked among the top 50 high school prospects by Baseball America. An outfielder with power and speed, he would have been drafted in June had he not set his price ``really high'' -- according to his dad -- because he wanted to go to Stanford.
Todd Gerhart, who coached his son in football at Norco, portrayed him as a ``basic kid'' who ``willed his way'' to stardom. Gerhart (6-foot-1, 228 pounds) not only excelled on the field but also in the classroom. He has never brought home a grade lower than an ``A,'' his dad said.
``He's no-nonsense, hard-nosed, and that's nice not only for football but also for baseball,'' said Stanford baseball coach Mark Marquess, who also was a football and baseball player at the university. ``He's a real quiet kid -- humble.''
Gerhart is so quiet and humble that, according to his hometown newspaper, his girlfriend's neighbor once asked him, ``Do you know that Toby Gerhart guy?''
Some people in the Riverside area might not recognize the face -- but the name, well, they probably will never forget. As early as Gerhart's sophomore season, then-Norco Coach Gary Campbell was telling the Los Angeles Times, ``He's by far the best back we've ever had, and we've had some great kids.''
The thing is, Gerhart could have gained even more yards in high school had he played more. He was pulled at halftime in some games because of the score, had his touches limited in other games to save him for the postseason and also missed a handful of games because of injuries. As it was, Gerhart shattered the state's previous career rushing record, held by Florida State's Lorenzo Booker, by 1,127 yards.
But the record wasn't his goal. ``My high school career would have felt incomplete, and not entirely successful, if we didn't walk away with the championship,'' Gerhart told the Times.
In his final high school game, Gerhart won his section championship, avenging losses in the final the previous two seasons.
Now he wants to have similar team success in college, his dad said. (Gerhart wasn't permitted to be interviewed for this story because Stanford Coach Walt Harris doesn't allow freshmen to speak with reporters during the week.)
``I know he wants to go to bowl games every single year,'' said Todd Gerhart, a fullback for Cal State-Fullerton in the mid-1980s who went on to play in the United States Football League. ``He remembers seeing Stanford in bowl games.''
Gerhart, who ultimately chose Stanford over UCLA, got off to a good start last month in training camp, but a hamstring injury slowed his progress. Healthy now, he is again impressing teammates.
``He's not afraid to hit anyone; he runs through people,'' defensive end Pannel Egboh said.
Quarterback Trent Edwards called Gerhart's performance Saturday a pleasant surprise.
``His combination of power and the way he hits the hole, you're handing the ball off to him and he's hitting it very fast, and he's a big guy to take down,'' Edwards said. ``We haven't had a lot of running backs like that here.''
Gerhart, who was allowed to speak publicly immediately after Saturday's game, described his play as ``average'' at best.
``I was stumbling a couple of times in the open field, where maybe I make a nice cut and possibly break one,'' said Gerhart, who didn't touch the ball until the second quarter. ``I just need to continue to get better and keep on going.''
Next chance: Saturday at San Jose State.
