Numbers Pile Up For Park View's Dudinski
Already the career rushing leader at what could be dubbed Tailback High, Park View's Deric Dudinski has a chance to enter an elite group of Northern Virginia backs as the Patriots push towards their first Group AA Division 4 Region II championship since 2000.
The 5-foot-9, 180-pound senior enters Park View's season finale against Broad Run with 1,780 rushing yards and 23 touchdowns on 181 carries this season. He has a chance to become just the 15th back in Northern Virginia public school history to eclipse 2,000 yards, and this Friday night should pass former Fairfax High star Brandon Royster for the second-most career rushing yards in the area. Dudinski's 5,329 career yards are just 46 behind Royster, whose younger brother Evan is the area's all-time leading rusher after finishing his career at Westfield last fall with 6,384 yards.
Two weeks ago, Dudinski passed 1989 graduate Tony Conway as the school's all-time leading rusher, and now the senior has Conway's single-season mark of 2,329 yards - set when the Patriots won their lone state championship in 1988 - within reach should the Patriots advance deep into the postseason. Former Park View backs William Chester (2,140 yards in 2000), Allen Pinkett (1,959 in 1980) and Nelson Stickley (1,929 in 1998) also had big seasons at a school that has gained a reputation for producing standout ball carriers.
The area's highest single-season rushing total came in 1995 by West Springfield's Damone Boone, who would later play at the University of Maryland. That season, Boone totaled 2,592 yards, the 11th-most in state history. Current Chicago Bears tailback Thomas Jones holds the state's single-season mark of 3,319 yards, set while playing for Powell Valley High in Roanoke in 1994.
During Boone's record-setting season in 1995, he had a state-record 500 yards against Annandale and 422 against Hayfield, needing just 10 games (the Spartans did not make the playoffs that season) to reach his season total. Like Boone just over a decade ago, Dudinski has put together some video game-like numbers in a few contests this fall, totaling 406 yards and six touchdowns on just 17 carries against Briar Woods on Sept. 29 and 319 yards and four scores against Potomac Falls two weeks ago. He also ran for 260 yards and three touchdowns in a 35-7 win over Dominion on Oct. 20.
As the numbers pile up, so does the interest from Division I-A and I-AA schools, including Northwestern University.
Deric Dudinski's Career Rushing Totals:
2003: 587
2004: 1,630
2005: 1,332
2006: 1,780
Career: 5,329
Northern Virginia's 2,000-Yard Backs:
1. Damone Boone, West Springfield, 1995: 2,592
2. Trevor Bacon, Langley, 2004: 2,365
3. Marcus Howard, Robinson, 1996: 2,355
4. Tony Conway, Park View, 1988: 2,329
5. Cedric Bryant, Edison, 2000: 2,296
6. Matt Nickerson, Woodson, 2004: 2,277
7. James Milliner, Annandale, 1990: 2,238
8. Evan Royster, Westfield, 2004: 2,179
9. Evan Royster, Westfield, 2005: 2,164
10. Charlie Garner, JEB Stuart, 1989: 2,151
11. William Chester, Park View, 2000: 2,140
12. Jack Brooks, West Springfield, 1980: 2,070
13. Mike Imoh, Robinson, 2001: 2,064
14. Andre Yates, Yorktown, 1990: 2,056
