6B- The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, January 7, 1998
... .............
Despite loss, Leaf proves his worth,
Washington State quarterback has a lot going for him as he heads to NFL
By John Leroi game. tough to win games, and he is our best State coach Mike Price, that's ju
Daily Sports Editor -He even went so far to say that the offensive player." the kind of guy Leaf is.
PASADENA, Calif. - For Ryan reason Washington State lost was the That's quite a compliment from a "He is a tremendous individual
Leaf, there are no losers. Not among absence of underrated running back Heisman Trophy finalist and possi- Price said. "And he's also the be
his Washington State counterparts at Michael Black, saying that "when you ble future NFL All-Pro. player in the country. In my min
least. Despite a devastating loss to lose your best offensive player, it's But according to Washington that's quite a combination."
Michigan in the Rose Bowl, despite '
one more second Leaf thought he
had, despite the four times the 2
Wolverines sacked him, Leaf could
still enjoy the moment. <,"r
Instead of dropping his head and y
tucking his tail between his legs
after the Cougars' 21-16 loss to
Michigan, Leaf lit up a cigar at the
50-yard line and snapped photos
with his family to celebrate;
Washington State's first Rose Bowl
appearance in 67 years. '
"Obviously, we were disappoint-
ed," Leaf said. "But to say this was a 4
wasted season because we didn't win
the Rose Bowl J v.4
would be a dis-
credit to the
this team has _{
achieved."
After all was .4."":
said and done, r:
two things were
quite obvious
about Ryan Leaf
Leaf - he is an out- 44
standing quarter-
back - a sure star-to-be in the NFL
- and he is an even better person.
He gave the Wolverines fits all
game, passing for 331 yards and a
touchdown.
He delivered the scariest moment
of the game on the Cougars' final
drive when Michigan fans and play-
ers alike had to be thankful that Leaf
didn't get one final shot at the end
zone.
The junior, who declared himself
eligible for the NFL Draft and cer-
tainly will almost be a top-five pick, Y"
also ran for 35 yards, but his best 3
attribute might be his personality.
He joked around with Woodson at
the Heisman Trophy presentation in h4} w.2
New York last month and again at >{ \>
Universal Studios four days before
the game.
Some say Leaf is arrogant, but his "
confidence stems from the fact that j
he said he simply enjoys life and 1
rarely lets anybody "bum his trip."
He was jovial and generally eager ............
to answer reporters' questions after >
what was certainly the most disap-
pointing loss of his career.
He was the only Cougar not to Y { >' . ..";
blame the officials for letting the
clock run down at the end of the
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He gave Michigan fits all day, but Washington State quarterback Ryan Leaf couldn't quite pull out a victory over the
Wolverines in the Rose Bowl. Still, Leaf displayed the skills that will make him a top-five pick in April's NFL Draft.
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