[terry]

[quote author=garvin link=topic=5883.msg43396#msg43396 date=1335909006]
we don't have a receiving threat comparable to Milburn (who caught close to 40 passes out of the backfield)

I recall Milburn, and loved watching him play.  But I'm not convinced that he was any better than the RBs we have now, as a runner or receiver.
[/quote]

Milburn was faster than any of our current RBs, and Milburn had better moves than any of our current RBs. (I'm talking about Taylor, Gaffney, Wilkerson, and Seale; I haven't seen enough of Young or any of Sanders.) But Milburn was less physical than our current RBs. Milburn could run away from tacklers or elude them. Milburn was a home-run threat when he got the ball in the open field. He wasn't the guy to run between the tackles and move the pile. In the current Stanford offense, we try to be more physical than the defense and to get more and bigger blockers at the point of attack. Then we give the ball to a tough, physical back and tell him to go between the tackles, run downhill, and break a few tackles. Gerhart was great at that. Taylor does that very well. That wasn't Milburn's game. He brought a different dimension. I would love to have Milburn on this team. He was a truly special player -- not just a good back, but a special back. Milburn would give us something we've been lacking on offense.

Milburn's stats:

Year    Rush Yds.    Avg.        Rec.    Rec. Yds.  All-Purp. Yds.    TDs
1990        729          4.8        64          632          2,222            5
1991        598          4.6        40          454          1,514            6
1992        851          4.8        37          405          2,121          13
Total      2,178        4.7      141        1,491        5,857          24

Milburn's all-purpose yards in 1990 and 1992 are the top two single-season all-purpose yardage totals in Stanford history. Officially, Milburn is the only Pac-10 / Pac-12 player to gain over 2,000 all-purpose yards in a season twice. (Reggie Bush did it twice, but his stats for one of those seasons were vacated.) Milburn led the NCAA in all-purpose yards in 1990, and led the Pac-10 in all-purpose yards in 1990 and 1992. He ranks 2nd in Stanford history in career all-purpose yards, 7th in career rushing yards, 10th in career receptions, and 10th in career TDs, even though he played only three years at Stanford.

Note: Bowl games were not included in the stats at that time.

[terry]

[quote author=garvin link=topic=5883.msg43396#msg43396 date=1335909006]
we don't have a receiving threat comparable to Milburn (who caught close to 40 passes out of the backfield)

I recall Milburn, and loved watching him play.  But I'm not convinced that he was any better than the RBs we have now, as a runner or receiver.
[/quote]

Milburn was faster than any of our current RBs, and Milburn had better moves than any of our current RBs. (I'm talking about Taylor, Gaffney, Wilkerson, and Seale; I haven't seen enough of Young or any of Sanders.) But Milburn was less physical than our current RBs. Milburn could run away from tacklers or elude them. Milburn was a home-run threat when he got the ball in the open field. He wasn't the guy to run between the tackles and move the pile. In the current Stanford offense, we try to be more physical than the defense and to get more and bigger blockers at the point of attack. Then we give the ball to a tough, physical back and tell him to go between the tackles, run downhill, and break a few tackles. Gerhart was great at that. Taylor does that very well. That wasn't Milburn's game. He brought a different dimension. I would love to have Milburn on this team. He was a truly special player -- not just a good back, but a special back. Milburn would give us something we've been lacking on offense.

Milburn's stats:

Year    Rush Yds.    Avg.        Rec.    Rec. Yds.  All-Purp. Yds.    TDs
1990        729          4.8        64          632          2,222            5
1991        598          4.6        40          454          1,514            6
1992        851          4.8        37          405          2,121          13
Total      2,178        4.7      141        1,491        5,857          24

Milburn's all-purpose yards in 1990 and 1992 are the top two single-season all-purpose yardage totals in Stanford history. Officially, Milburn is the only Pac-10 / Pac-12 player to gain over 2,000 all-purpose yards in a season twice. (Reggie Bush did it twice, but his stats for one of those seasons were vacated.) Milburn led the NCAA in all-purpose yards in 1990, and led the Pac-10 in all-purpose yards in 1990 and 1992. He ranks 2nd in Stanford history in career all-purpose yards, 7th in career rushing yards, 10th in career receptions, and 10th in career TDs, even though he played only three years at Stanford.

Note: Bowl games were not included in the stats at that time.