Consider the performance of four former New Jersey prep stars last weekend.
•Iowa's Shonn Greene, a junior, rushed for 211 yards and two touchdowns against Purdue, and is the nation's No. 1 rusher with 1,585 yards. Iowa enters its final game against Minnesota on a resurgent note after losing four games by a total of 12 points before turning around its season by stunning Penn State.
Greene has rushed for at least 100 yards in all 11 games this season, and if he gains more than 107 Saturday, he'll break Tavian Banks' school record for yards in a season. "To be producing on such a consistent level, that's just amazing," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz says. "You run out of superlatives. … I can't imagine anyone playing better at running back than Shonn Greene."
•Connecticut's Donald Brown, a junior, became the Huskies' career rushing leader after running for 131 yards and one TD against Syracuse. He leads the nation with 153.7 yards a game. The Huskies, who meet South Florida on Sunday, are back on track after dropping three of their previous four before last week's win against the Orange.
•Georgia's Knowshon Moreno, a redshirt sophomore, rushed for 131 yards and also had a touchdown reception in a win against Auburn. Moreno is the Southeastern Conference's leading rusher, averaging 113.1 yards a game, which is 13th nationally. He also leads the league in scoring TDs with 16. He became the second player in school history to rush for 1,000 yards in two consecutive seasons. Herschel Walker did it all three of his years from 1980-82. Georgia hopes to cap off a 10-win regular season with a victory against Georgia Tech on Nov. 29.
•Rutgers' Joe Martinek, a redshirt freshman, ran for a career-high 98 yards and two touchdowns in a win against South Florida. "Jersey Joe" is the all-time leading rusher in New Jersey high school football history with 7,589 rushing yards and 80 touchdowns. With Martinek coming on strong recently, the Scarlet Knights have won four in a row after a 1-5 start to put themselves in bowl contention. They need wins in their final two games, beginning with Army on Saturday.