Fans Are Oohing, Ahhing Over Him : * Prep football: There’s no stopping Rosemead’s 6-3, 280-pound fullback in short-yardage situations.

Any running back who has carried the ball more than once in his life expects to be the recipient of some pointed elbows, knees and words as he extricates himself from collisions and pileups at the line of scrimmage.

It’s an unwritten rule of the game. The crazed souls you meet on the way up off the turf are the same ones you encountered on the way down.

But Pat Ahhing, a 6-foot-3, 280-pound senior at Rosemead High, rarely absorbs that kind of abuse when he plows through the line in search of the goal line or a first down. Instead, he silently inflicts punishment upon the unfortunate defenders who get in his way.

“I hear a lot of grunts and groans,” Ahhing said with a toothy grin. “A lot of guys start yelling, ‘Get him off me!’ They try and roll me over. It’s pretty fun.”

A Division I prospect as a defensive lineman, Ahhing was first deployed at fullback in short-yardage situations for the Panthers last season.

The rationale for utilizing Ahhing in the backfield was simple.

“He’s a big boy,” Rosemead Coach Jim Hall said. “He’s hard to bring down.”

Last season, Ahhing gained almost 500 yards and scored 14 touchdowns for Rosemead, which won the Mission Valley League championship and advanced to the quarterfinals of the Southern Section Division V playoffs before losing to Palm Desert.

This season, Ahhing has carried five times for 11 yards and scored two touchdowns and a two-point conversion for the Panthers, who are 1-1 after losing to Baldwin Park in their opener, 29-26, and beating Azusa, 21-9, last week.

“He’s a problem for a high school team just because of his mass,” Azusa Coach Mark Schuster said. “The key is to get him before he gets rolling. Once he gets those feet churning, he’s going to get his yards because he’s going to take your whole team with him.”

Ahhing, who is of Samoan descent, said he can sense opponents’ apprehension when he enters the game on offense.

“Sometimes, I look across the line and I can see it in their eyes, they know I’m coming,” Ahhing said.

Misdirection is not Ahhing’s forte. Nor is waiting for linemen to break open a hole.

“I just run them over most of the time,” Ahhing said of his teammates. “They don’t care as long as I get the yard.”

Whether bulldozing through or stomping over defenders, Ahhing almost always moves the ball forward. And while he prefers to power straight ahead, he is not averse to occasionally changing his course.

Last year against Duarte, for example, Ahhing used some of the agility that has made him a three-year starter for the varsity basketball team when he received the ball on a quick dive play inside the five yard-line. Ahhing took a handoff from quarterback Matt Koffler, got through the line and saw a safety approaching to make a tackle.

“He had his head down and he was looking at my feet,” said Ahhing, who jumped over the defender and scored a touchdown.

Ahhing, whose great-grandfather was Chinese, was born in Hawaii. His family, which also includes an older brother and two older sisters, moved from San Diego to Rosemead when he was 3. It wasn’t until the family settled in the San Gabriel Valley, Ahhing said, that he became aware of his size.

“In San Diego, I was normal size because we were all Samoans,” Ahhing said. “I never thought of it, it wasn’t such a big deal. But when I moved up here, all the kids were looking up at me.”

Ahhing participated in football, basketball and track his freshman year at Rosemead, but gave up the shotput after one season because, “It was kind of boring with the sitting around waiting to do your event.”

Staying busy on the football field was not a problem for Ahhing. As a 6-foot, 210-pound freshman, he played running back and linebacker for the freshman team. He grew to 6-1 1/2, 230 pounds his sophomore year and moved up to the varsity as a rover on defense. Last season, at 6-2, 260, he played defensive end and fullback, and this year he is playing tight end, fullback and defensive tackle.

“My freshman year was the first time I ever put pads on,” Ahhing said. “I still didn’t really understand the game my sophomore year and was hesitant to go on the field.

“Last year was fun, and now, I can’t wait to get out there.”

Hall moved Ahhing from defensive end to defensive tackle this season because that is the position he is most likely to play in college. Ahhing, who has four solo tackles, five assists and a sack, is happy the switch was made.

“Defensive end was fun, but you have assignments where you have to contain, so you don’t get in there much and get much action unless they come right at you,” he said. “At tackle, you’re always hitting someone. Now that’s fun.”

Ahhing said he plans to take recruiting trips to California, USC and Washington State and two other schools before deciding where he will attend college.

For now, he is intent on helping the Panthers to another league championship and a long stay in the playoffs.

“I love scoring touchdowns and making sacks,” Ahhing said. “But winning a CIF championship, that would be the highlight of my career.”