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Nov. 14—It didn’t take long for running back Luis Salgado to catch the attention of Whitworth head coach Rod Sandberg.
“The game was against Pacific, his freshman year,” Sandberg said.
Salgado, now a junior, rushed for 108 yards on 17 attempts and two touchdowns in a 28-17 win at Pacific on Nov. 5, 2022.
“That was the second-to-last game, and we were banged up,” Sandberg said. “We gave him a shot, he took it and hasn’t looked back since.”
The former two-way standout from Kamiakin High School in Kennewick announced his arrival at Whitworth on a single play the week before when he scored on a 63-yard run.
“That was the catalyst for the Pacific game, for sure,” Salgado said.
The 5-foot-8, 188-pound Salgado has been in the starting lineup since his breakout moment.
He rushed for 717 yards and nine touchdowns and had 37 receptions for 280 yards and four touchdowns last season. He was named to the All-Northwest Conference first team. He’s on his way to a repeat honor with 1,150 yards and nine TDs and 24 receptions for 164 yards.
His biggest feat came in Whitworth’s 39-32 win at Pacific last month when he rushed for a school- and NWC-record 365 yards on 25 carries and three TDs. He also had two catches for 21 yards.
“It’s a crazy number — that’s how many days are in a year, 365,” Salgado said.
He eclipsed the 303 yards on 40 carries Damion Putney had in 1999.
“We didn’t know he was going to be this good,” Sandberg said. “It’s hard to know with running backs. But he’s a gamer.”
Salgado has the usual dings a running back has at this point of the season. He said nothing will hold him back from the showdown to decide the NWC championship Saturday when perennial power Linfield visits.
Last year at Linfield, the Pirates rallied from a 24-14 deficit with two TDs in the fourth quarter to win 28-24, earning a playoff berth.
Before Salgado…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/countdown-whitworth-linfield-pirates-lean-030200694.html
Author : The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Wash.
Publish date : 2024-11-15 03:02:00
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