BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Telegraph Staff Writer
UAB senior football player DeWayne McBride, a Starke native, set the school record for rushing touchdowns in a season and was named Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week following his performance in the Blazers’ 41-21 win against North Texas on Nov. 12.
The son of DeWayne McBride and Melissa Hill rushed for 120 yards on 20 carries, with his longest run covering 33 yards. He rushed for three scores, giving him 17 for the season.
McBride is currently third in UAB history for rushing touchdowns in a career. He has 34, which leaves him trailing Pat Green (1991-94), who had 35, and Spencer Brown (2017-20), who had 41.
The North Texas game gave McBride his 10th straight 100-yard game and the 17th 100-yard game in his UAB career. That leaves him trailing only Brown, who had 19.
He may be making his mark on UAB and in Conference USA, but the Ocala Vanguard High School graduate is also making his mark in the NCAA as a whole. McBride leads the nation in rushing yards per game (156.3) and runs of 20-plus yards (17). He and Michigan’s Blake Corum are tied for second in the nation in rushing touchdowns with 17 each, leaving them trailing Minnesota’s Mohamed Ibrahim, who has 18. McBride is also second in the nation in total rushing yards (1,407), leaving him trailing Illinois’ Chase Brown (1,442).
McBride, over the course of 28 games, is the NCAA’s active career leader in yards per rush (7.1) and rushing yards per game (114.9).
The Blazers’ star back missed the first game of the season, but returned to rush for 177 yards and one touchdown on 20 carries in a 21-14 loss to Liberty on Sept. 10. McBride’s longest run covered 56 yards.
In a 35-21 win over Georgia Southern on Sept. 17, McBride rushed for 223 yards and four touchdowns on 28 carries. His longest run gained 47 yards.
McBride rushed for 121 yards and one touchdown on 27 carries in a 28-24 loss to Rice on Oct. 1, while on Oct. 8, he gained 120 yards and scored three touchdowns on 12 carries in a 41-14 win over Middle Tennessee. His day against Middle Tennessee included a 45-yard run.
On Oct. 15, McBride rushed for 137 yards and two scores on 29 carries in a 34-20 win over Charlotte. He gained 200 yards on 24 carries in a 20-17 loss to Western Kentucky on Oct. 21 and rushed for 168 yards and a touchdown on 24 carries in a 24-17 loss to FAU on Oct. 29.
McBride finished with 141 yards and two scores on 19 carries in a 44-38 double-overtime loss to UTSA on Nov. 5.
The Western Kentucky, FAU and UTSA games saw McBride break free for runs of 64, 63 and 68 yards.
UAB (5-5) will travel to take on sixth-ranked LSU on Saturday, Nov. 19, at 8 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPN2.
