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GREENWOOD, Ind. -- Wayne Williams kept a pledge he and his father made to each other and shared a moment theyd both been waiting for all their lives.The North Carolina man drove to his fathers gravesite in Indiana to listen to the Chicago Cubs win Game 7 of the World Series. Wearing a Joe Maddon replica jersey and a Cubs cap hed recently purchased, Williams listened to the Cubs 10-inning, 8-7 victory over the Cleveland Indians on his smartphone Wednesday night at his fathers grave in the military section of Greenwood Forest Lawn Cemetery in suburban Indianapolis.Williams told WTHR-TV (http://bit.ly/2fHsbEm ) he and his father had a pact: When the Cubs got into the World Series again, they would listen to the games together.His father, also named Wayne Williams, was a Navy veteran. He died of cancer in 1980 at age 53. Williams said he knew on Sunday night what he would have to do if the Cubs kept their title hopes alive.If they win tomorrow, I have to be heading out the next morning, he said, noting that his wife supported it fully.The 68-year-old retired customer trainer said unlit roads made the trip a little difficult. He also said trying to get to his fathers gravesite required as few stops as possible if he was to make it by the first pitch.Cemetery workers kept the gates open for Williams, who was greeted by TV news crews as he took his spot and tuned in.As Williams listened, he said his wife sent text messages saying, Theyre killing me. Theyre killing me.Finally, after 10 innings and a rain delay, the Cubs rallied to take the lead and held off the last bid for a Cleveland rally. Williams, a Cubs W flag draped on his fold-out chair, said his celebration was subdued.I just kind of said `We did it, like I had anything to do with it, he said. I know how much he would have enjoyed it.As he headed back to his home in Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina, Williams said he would watch a recording of the game. By then, he said he thinks the idea of the World Series championship will have sunken in.Ill be able to work my way through it, he said.---Information from: WTHR-TV, http://www.wthr.com/Thomas Vermaelen Jersey .Y. -- The Buffalo Sabres have placed centre Cody Hodgson on injured reserve and recalled two players from their AHL affiliate in Rochester. Thomas Meunier Belgium Jersey .Y. -- Marcell Dareus and the Buffalo Bills defence made life miserable for Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco. http://www.belgiumsoccerpro.com/Marouane-Fellaini-Belgium-Jersey/ .H. -- Matt Kenseth made it 2 for 2 in the Chase, holding off teammate Kyle Busch to win Sunday at New Hampshire Motor Speedway. Marouane Fellaini Belgium Jersey . After a lengthy wait, persistent rain finally forced the postponement of the Nationals game against the Miami Marlins on Saturday night. The teams, and a few thousand fans, waited nearly four hours from the 7:05 scheduled start time before an announcement was made shortly before 11 p. Mousa Dembele Jersey . But what about the officials? Every sport has officials and they also have stories about hard work and sacrifice but their accomplishments are seldom recognized by anyone outside their inner circle.The diminished role of the running back in college football was greatly exaggerated.In some respects, the position is as strong as ever.Alabamas Derrick Henry became the first running back to win the Heisman Trophy since 2009 last year and was one of five players to run for 1,800 yards as rushing averages nationwide surged to record levels. Henry has moved on to the NFL, but three 1,800-yard rushers are back this season: LSUs Leonard Fournette, Stanfords Christian McCaffrey and Oregons Royce Freeman.The surge in star power at the position flies in the face of the conventional wisdom that college football has become a quarterback-dominated game.The running game, I wouldnt say it had gotten lost necessarily, because there have been a lot of good runners, Stanford coach David Shaw said. But the emphasis has been on the spread passing attacks. But really good spread teams always have a good back. Its good to see in college football, guys turn around and hand it to a runner and be physical. I think those guys are fun to watch -- and we have a pretty special one, too.The notion that a running backs value was fading gained credence when no players at that position were drafted in the first round in either 2013 or 2014. Quarterbacks won the Heisman eight times in a nine-year stretch from 2006-14, the exception being Alabama running back Mark Ingram in 2009.People have definitely advised me to pick another position, said Tennessees Jalen Hurd, whos a bit taller than the average running back at 6-foot-4. Ive got people all the time just looking at me like, `Dude, are you sure you want be a running back? But thats my position.Hurd stayed in the backfield and enters his junior season just 891 yards shy of Travis Henrys school rushing record.The emergence of Fournette, Hurd and Georgias Nick Chubb, who is recovering from a knee injury that sidelined him for the second half of the 2015 season, has helped the Southeastern Conference maintain its elite status during a stretch when it has struggled to produce top quarterbacks.I think definitely if it didnt change last year, the running back value is going to change this year, Hurd said.This running back resurgence goes well beyond the SEC and stretches from coast to coast.The Atlantic Coast Conference returns three players who ran for more than 1,400 yards last season -- Florida States Dalvin Cook, Clemsons Wayne Gallman and North Carolinas Elijah Hood. The league also welcomes back 2014 ACC player of the year James Conner of Pittsburgh after his successful fight with cancer.On the West Coast, the Pac-12 has the Heisman Trophy runner-up in McCaffrey as well as Freeman.There are a lot of good-looking running backs out there, said Dave Warner, Michigan States co-offensive coordinator/running backs coach.In the NFL, theyrre not as premium anymore because they dont last very long, Warner added.dddddddddddd (In) college, they last with us.Many of those running backs are competitive enough to keep tabs on one another.I watch all of those guys, Cook said. Fournette, McCaffrey. ... Chubb will come back 100 percent. Jalen. Royce. I watch all of those guys. Great backs. (I) take little lessons from their game, try to tweak my game a little bit because all of those guys have different running styles. You cant ever stop learning, no matter what.Defenses havent quite learned how to slow them down.Football Bowl Subdivision teams averaged 178.3 yards rushing per game last season, the most since 1980. Thats at least partly due to the increased number of snaps that have come from the rise in up-tempo offenses.But teams also are running more effectively than before. FBS schools averaged a record 4.5 yards per carry last seasonI think its a byproduct of spread offenses, Tennessee coach Butch Jones said. I think its the byproduct of play-action passes and all the run-pass options that offenses are doing now where a quarterback has three or four options on a run play in every single play.The soaring totals have left some running backs fighting for attention.Hoods track record would make him a legitimate Heisman candidate many other years, but McCaffrey, Fournette, Freeman and Cook are coming off even better seasons. The North Carolina standout said he didnt worry about the lack of attention and, my play speaks for itself.San Diego States Donnel Pumphrey has rushed for more than 3,500 yards over the last two seasons, yet he isnt particularly well known outside the Mountain West Conference. Gallman rushed for 1,527 yards last year while being overshadowed by Cook and Hood in the ACC and by quarterback Deshaun Watson in his own backfield.Thats an extra chip. I have to go out there and prove myself every play, Gallman said.Recent history suggests they shouldnt expect a payoff down the road.At least two running backs were drafted in the first round every year from 1985 to 2010, but the NFL doesnt hold that position nearly in the same regard anymore. A total of three running backs have been first-round selections over the last four years, including Ohio States Ezekiel Elliott with the fourth overall pick in the most recent draft.But at least in college, running backs have become increasingly vital. Its no coincidence the nations most prolific runners play on some of college footballs top teams.---AP Sports Writers Aaron Beard, Josh Dubow, Pete Iacobelli, Joe Reedy, Noah Trister and Kurt Voigt contributed to this report.---AP college website: collegefootball.ap.org ' ' '