The way the Seahawks offense ground out rushing yards last night — we're talking two 100-yard rushers and a not-so-mobile quarterback who averaged 10 yards per rush — left some reporters wondering: If Mack Strong didn't leave the game with an injury at halftime, would he have eclipsed the 100-yard mark as well?

"Let's not get carried away," Strong said.

But that's exactly what the Seahawks did last night. They got carried away. Really, really carried away. Team-rushing-record carried away — to the tune of 320 yards.

And while Shaun Alexander's spotlight surely shone the brightest — it usually does on Sunday night — backups like Maurice Morris and Leonard Weaver got their share of carrying, too.

"They got a chance today," running backs coach Stump Mitchell said. "And they made the most of it."

Weaver replaced Strong at the start of the third quarter. He gained 21 yards on five carries, laid out a couple of Texans with vicious blocks and knocked one helpless defensive back to the ground with a talk-to-the-hand stiff arm.

All Morris did was play his best game in four years with the Seahawks. He carried eight times, gained 104 yards and scored the Seahawks' final touchdown on an 11-yard dance to the right corner. His average carry, good for 13 yards, was like something out of a video-game box score.

"That guy is phenomenal," Weaver said. "All you have to do is give somebody a chance. He got his chance tonight, and he did a lot with it."

Morris said the same thing about Weaver. The backups combined for 125 rushing yards or nearly double the Texans' net rushing yards (67). They talked about how they fed off each other, how the offensive line made their jobs easy, how Morris set a career high with a 49-yard run.

"I needed that," Morris said. "I came into the game with something like 1.3 [yards per carry]."

Morris and Alexander both gained more than 100 yards, which is only the third time that's happened in team history. There was some talk afterward that Morris is a good change-of-pace back, that his speed complements Alexander's combination of finesse and power.

Some Seahawks took umbrage to that, though, calling Morris a solid running back in his own right.

"People don't know much about [Morris] because he really hasn't gotten many opportunities," quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said. "He is a guy we can count on."

Same with Weaver, who wasn't drafted and made the roster anyway, despite playing linebacker and tight end in college. It still hasn't sunk in.

"Maybe a little," Weaver said. "But not much. It's too soon."

Added Morris: "You can ask any running back in the league. Everybody wants to touch the ball. But you have to be patient. You'll get your opportunity."

Last night, they both did.

Rush hour
Seahawks' rushing leaders yesterday
Player	TCB	Yds.	Avg.	LG	TD
Alexander	22	141	6.4	23	4
Morris	8	104	13.0	49	1
Hasselbeck	4	40	10.0	23	0
Weaver	5	21	4.2	14	0
Strong	1	16	16.0	16	0