By BOB VARMETTE

Journal Sports Writer

All the yards and all the touchdowns finally lead to this. Today, Tyler Evans and the McLeod West Falcons will play the Pillager Huskies for the Class 1A state championship.

When the game kicks off at 11 a.m. at the Metrodome in Minneapolis, Evans -- Minnesota's all-time high school career rushing leader regardless of class -- will run for the title he's been chasing, a title he believes will give real meaning to his legacy.

"My records will mean a lot more if we win a state championship," Evans said. "I'll feel like I accomplished something if we win the title game. All my records would stand for that.

"If we lose, I'll feel like I haven't accomplished too much if I can't lead my team to a state title. There's going to feel like there's a big void."

Evans enters today's game with 3,513 yards and 45 rushing touchdowns this season. He has amassed 7,336 yards rushing in his three-year varsity career. Every yard Evans gains today will set new records.

But all the numbers, and all the honors, which now includes the 2001 Associated Press Football Player of the Year awarded Wednesday, haven't been distractions. Neither has the sudden interest in him by the Twin Cities' media, which descended upon Evans immediately after the Falcons' 40-12 semifinal win over Goodhue last week.

"We're not going to be focused on anything but winning the football game," Evans said. "We're going to be focused on doing everything we need to do to win the football game."

All season long, Evans has been the first to point out he can't do it alone, and that he hasn't done it alone. He's been the first to credit his offensive line, his blocking backs, his teammates and his coaches.

But all season long, all eyes have first focused on Evans. Every opposing defense has first asked the questions, "How do we stop him? Can we stop him?" It won't be any different today.

"We're going in thinking, 'If we can stop Tyler Evans, we stop McLeod West,'" Pillager coach Pete Bothun said. "We have to keep the ball away from their offense, keep the ball away from him. If we don't, we haven't got a chance. They're a machine."

The top-ranked Falcons have cruised through the postseason, including a 38-12 win over Red Rock Central in the quarterfinals and the semifinal pounding of Goodhue. Evans rushed for 351 yards and four touchdowns against RRC, and 272 yards and five touchdowns against Goodhue.

Evans' first performance on a big-time stage was a big success. Today, the Falcons' big-time player expects to have another big day.

Pressure? Sure. But that's nothing new for Evans and the Falcons. McLeod West has been the top-ranked team in Class 1A much of the season. Every game brought the expectation of another victory. Every game brought the expectation of another Evans' onslaught.

Everyone expected the Falcons and Evans to be here, to be playing for the state title.

"It was expected," Evans said. "We've put tremendous pressure on ourselves as a team to perform well. We've had a tremendous amount of pressure to get here. And we still feel like we haven't accomplished anything if we don't win this game."

The Falcons will play this game as they have every other game. Evans will line up eight yards deep in the Power I. Much of the time he'll run behind the Falcons' hefty left side, which is dominated by 6-foot-1, 350-pound sophomore Nathan Benson and 5-foot-11, 265-pound sophomore Reggie Vacek.

Power football. Nothing fancy, nothing complicated -- just "Here we come, you try to stop us" football.

Bothun doubts anyone can stop the McLeod West running game. He's hoping his defense contains Evans well enough that the Huskies offense can keep up.

The seventh-ranked Huskies will use both a 5-3 and a 4-4. While the Falcons will hold a weight advantage in the matchup of their offensive line against the Pillager defensive line, Bothun thinks the Huskies may be able to use their advantage in quickness.

"They are big, but we think we're quicker," Bothun said. "And we've got good linebackers."

A quick line and active linebackers have given the Falcons' offensive line problems. In the only two games this season that Evans didn't average at least four yards per carry, Sleepy Eye St. Mary's "held" him to 158 yards in the regular season and 221 yards in the Section 2-1A title game.

"We don't know exactly what they'll throw at us," McLeod West co-coach Curt Strand said. "They're very comparable to (Goodhue)."

If the Huskies are, they could be in big trouble. The Falcons got three touchdowns from Evans in the first quarter to take a 24-0 lead. Forced into catch-up mode, the running Wildcats threw six interceptions after having had only four passes intercepted in their first 12 games.

Evans with one run tamed the Wildcats. Goodhue had just driven 76 yards to cut the Falcons' lead to 24-12 midway through the third quarter. On the ensuing possession, Evans needed only three plays to reach the end zone -- the last a 54-yard run in which he broke five tackles and then outran the Wildcats.

A big play at a critical time is the sign of a big-time player. Against the Huskies, Evans will undoubtedly be called upon again.

"We've got to win this game," Evans said. "It's the biggest game of our lives so far, or ever. We've got to step it up and play well."

And Evans again acknowledged he got a lot of friends to help him shine on the biggest stage of his life.

"I feel our team can do this," Evans said. "I feel our team is a better team, and if we play well, we should win."

The McLeod

West tailback

expects one

last big game