Just a play before the highlight-reel moment came, a lineman had fallen on Nick Wilson's ankle. So when the Arizona running back found himself wide-open in the flat with only Oregon cornerback Ifo Ekpre-Olomu between him and the end zone, his usual repertoire of moves was limited.

"I sprained it pretty bad," Wilson remembers. "I couldn't really cut back and forth. So I just decided to run into him, and I hoped for the best."

A hit then jarred Autzen Stadium on that October night, and it wasn't administered by a defender.

Wilson, a true freshman playing in only his second Pac-12 game, is the one who brought the pain on his punishing route into the end zone. ESPN play-by-play man Rece Davis exclaimed that "Ekpre-Olomu got treated like a fly on [Wilson's] windshield," and a national television audience was introduced to yet another member of a rapidly emerging Pac-12 position group.

Coaches, fans and the media unofficially anointed 2014 "The Year of the Quarterback" in the conference. With Marcus Mariota, Brett Hundley, Cody Kessler, Jared Goff, Connor Halliday, Sean Mannion and others putting up big passing numbers, it's easy to understand why. But with many of those veteran quarterbacks gone and eight of the Pac-12's top 10 rushers returning, don't be surprised if at least some 2015 talk shifts to "The Year of the Running Back."

Wilson and fellow young bruiser Royce Freeman (Oregon) won't be true freshmen anymore. Meanwhile, last season's Pac-12 rushing champion Paul Perkins (UCLA, 6.3 yards per carry) and runner-up Devontae Booker (Utah) both return. Cal's Daniel Lasco, who quietly delivered a 1,000-yard season in 2014, also will be back alongside a host of promising talents such as Oregon's Thomas Tyner, Stanford's Christian McCaffrey and ASU's Demario Richard -- a player who racked up 5.7 yards per carry as a 17-year-old.

"[This conference] has some of the best running backs in the nation," Perkins says. "We're in the Pac-12, so we don't get as much love as I think we should. But I feel that's going to change over the next couple years."

Since the Pac-12 is typically viewed as a pass-happy conference, many of its running backs agree with Perkins. A common feeling suggests they're flying under the radar.

"Running backs in the Pac-12 are underrated because it's the West Coast, and it's a different type of running," Richard says. "It's not straight downhill power. But don't get me wrong, any back in the Pac-12 can still hop in the I-formation and take over the game without being in the spread and moving fast."

The 2014 season should have already addressed concerns of power, or a lack thereof. USC's Buck Allen, who declared for the NFL draft, contributed a strong dose of ferocious runs. Wilson made his physicality known when he plowed into that Oregon end zone, while Freeman also consistently bruised opponents. Booker muscled his way to 759 yards after contact during the regular season. The "finesse" categorization doesn't fit here; there's power aplenty among this conference's running backs.

There's versatility, too -- and that's something that runs well beyond Myles Jack's two-way, running back/linebacker exploits at UCLA. The recent golden age of passing in the Pac-12 has forced the league's running backs to adapt beyond the standard of just grabbing the football and dashing downfield with it. A back's ability to absorb and redirect significantly heavier, hard-charging linebackers is of paramount importance.

"Pass protection is the ticket for everyone," McCaffrey says. "That's something we really emphasize."

Contributions to the aerial game also are critical. ASU's D.J. Foster, who rushed for more than 1,000 yards while catching nearly 700 yards last season, has developed comfort at the slot receiver position. Stanford plans to utilize McCaffrey in similar all-purpose fashion, while Oregon State's Storm Woods and Washington's Dwayne Washington -- each their team's leading returning rusher -- improved their receiving production over the course of 2014.

There's a premium on versatility, and that's encouraged offseason strength gains around the conference. Wilson says he's packed on 12 pounds of muscle and maintained his speed, McCaffrey has bulked up seven pounds and ASU's Kalen Ballage -- another exciting young talent -- has added 16 pounds.

That's just a small sampling of the reported offseason progress around the Pac-12, where running backs have set lofty expectations for 2015.

"As far as stats go, I'm planning on rushing for 2,000 yards and winning the Heisman," Booker says. "Those are my two main goals."

Such production obviously would help shift the conference's spotlight to the running back position. There also will be opportunities for fresh talent to burst onto the scene and grab backfield headlines.

Lavon Coleman has a season under his belt at Washington. USC will be forced to find a new primary back (Tre Madden, Justin Davis and true freshman Ronald Jones II all are at the forefront) following Allen's departure. Four-star early enrollee Lonny Powell is making noise at Cal "with legs that look like tree stumps." Oregon newcomer Taj Griffin features electric speed, and junior college transfer De'Chavon Hayes already has earned a flattering football nickname at ASU: "Gump."

"He's going to be one of the most dynamic guys in the country," Richard promises. "The kid is really, really fast. If he gets a step on you, you might as well not even try because you're not going to catch up."

Hayes is just one shard in an intriguing Pac-12 running back mosaic surrounding top returners Perkins and Booker, perhaps the best overall collection of talent the conference has seen at the position in quite some time.

"We don't get the same respect [as other conferences], especially with the great group of backs we have in the Pac-12," Booker says. "I think they should do something about it. They should make it out here and let us be recognized, too."

If Wilson's smash into the end zone over a helpless defender as a true freshman was just an appetizer for what's coming in 2015, Booker's wish may just come true.