X’S AND O’S

Ryan Leaf versus Charles Woodson is a battle of wills.

That is, Washington State wishes Leaf wouldn’t throw the ball in Woodson’s direction, but everyone knows he will.

“I’d like to have him never throw a ball at him,” Washington State Coach Mike Price said. “I know Ryan will. I just accept that. It’s one of those things.

“I’m not saying you should never throw it there. It’s got to be the right route, the right coverage. But 80-85% of the time, I’d like to see him find someplace else to throw it.”

Leaf? He won’t listen.

“That just fuels my fire,” he said, allowing a little smile. “If somebody’s open, and Charles Woodson happens to be on that side, or Marcus Ray, I’m throwing it. We have five receivers. You can’t guard ‘em all.”

Leaf stood tall and sturdy in the Coliseum tunnel after a Washington State practice as he talked, a 6-foot-6, 238-pound quarterback with arms like a couple of tree trunks hauled out of a Northwest forest.

With the wraparound sunglasses he sometimes puts on for interviews, he looks every bit the cocky kid. But the kid is in there.

Leaf had never been to New York before the Heisman Trophy ceremony, and before he left, he rapped on the door of the winner.

“I knocked on his door and threw him my jersey and said, ‘Here’s my jersey, give me yours,’ ” Leaf said. “That was a once-in-a-lifetime deal. I’m going to frame it with one of mine and cherish it.”

In Woodson and Leaf, the Rose Bowl has the Heisman Trophy winner and the second runner-up--two of the top three vote-getters.

There’s Leaf, with his 3,637 passing yards and 33 touchdowns this season--both Pacific 10 Conference records--against 10 interceptions.

And then there’s Woodson, the cornerback/receiver/return specialist who picked off seven passes this season and will by lying in wait in Pasadena.

Leaf has two words: No fear.

“How can you fear somebody?” he said. “That means you’re not a very good competitor. If you fear them, you don’t want to compete. Anyone who says that shouldn’t be in sports much longer.”

It’s a matchup of such intrigue that try as they might, no one can diminish it.

“It’s not Ryan Leaf versus Charles Woodson, or Charles Woodson versus Washington State’s offense,” Leaf said. “It’s Washington State versus Michigan.

“This is about Washington State and Michigan. Quarterback and cornerback are two different positions. I don’t think a cornerback comes into play as much as a quarterback.”

But even if Leaf isn’t afraid of Woodson, he’s fascinated to see how a Michigan defense used to stopping the grind-it-out attacks of the Big Ten will counter Washington State’s one-back offense.

The Cougars use a wide-open assault that routinely features four receivers and sometimes five, with only the quarterback in the backfield.

Hence the stolen nickname for Kevin McKenzie, Chris Jackson, Shawn Tims, Shawn McWashington and Nian Taylor: the Fab Five.

Price knows that sounds a little familiar. Maybe somebody else used it first?

“Some Midwestern school,” he said, laughing.

Leaf is eager to see how the school of the original Fab Five counters the Cougars.

“They can watch film of what we do offensively, but we don’t have any film of teams running our formations against them,” he said.

“It’s difficult to say if they’re going to blitz or sit in a zone. I’m anxious to see the first few plays to see what they’re going to do. It’s going to be interesting.”

The interesting thing after the Rose Bowl will be Leaf’s announcement on whether he’ll declare for the NFL draft--though most people think it’s a foregone conclusion he will turn pro, since he is projected to go as high as No. 2.

Leaf isn’t saying, though he allows that his mind is made up, and he’ll tell the rest of us after the Rose Bowl.

Washington State apparently isn’t banking on his return, since the Cougars have signed junior college quarterback Bryan Paul from West L.A. College--and there’s only one reason you’d need him.

Price acts as if it’s still possible Leaf might come back, but makes it clear he believes Leaf is the best in a string of NFL quarterbacks from Washington State.

It’s a legacy that began with Jack Thompson, the Throwin’ Samoan, the third player selected in the 1979 draft, and continued most recently with Drew Bledsoe, the No. 1 pick in 1993.

“No question about it, he’s the best,” Price said. “I’m not saying they weren’t the best players at the time they were here, but Ryan right now is the best we’ve had. He’s a tremendous leader, with a strong arm and great vision. He has super confidence, he understands the game. He’s the best--statistically, athletically, he’s the best.”

Hard to believe now--if you give recruiting services much credit, that is--but Leaf was ranked only the ninth-best quarterback prospect in the country in 1994 by SuperPrep magazine.

Most of them you never heard of. The top-ranked prospect, Hines Ward, became a wide receiver at Georgia. No. 2 Robert Reed is a slotback at Mississippi, but No. 3 made a name for himself: It was Peyton Manning, the once-presumed future Heisman winner from Tennessee who finished second to Woodson.

Leaf was raw coming out of Russell High School in Great Falls, Mont., but Price--whose skill as a selector of young quarterbacks is proven--saw enough that he liked. That body wasn’t hard to miss, anyway.

“He was unpolished, and his technique wasn’t good,” Price said. “But he said, ‘Coach, what do I need to do to get better?’ We said, ‘Do this, do that.’ He wanted to be the best.”

Being one of the best eventually became a little isolating, which is part of the reason Leaf called the Tennessee football offices earlier this season, hoping to make contact with Manning. Leaf left his number, Manning called back that day, and the phone calls have become regular.

“Usually when we talk, it’s non-football related. We talk about how things are going with our families and friends and how we’re dealing with things,” Leaf said.

Asked if Manning’s experience returning for his senior year worked out even though he didn’t win the Heisman or beat Florida, Leaf said: “I think it worked out tremendous. I believe fully in what he did. He accomplished what he wanted to do, which was win the SEC championship. All the awards, he didn’t come back for that.”

For understanding closer to home, Leaf turns to backup quarterback Steve Birnbaum--who might not completely understand Leaf all the time, but does humor him.

Birnbaum is Leaf’s partner in pregame rituals, his co-conspirator in superstition.

“Me and Ryan, every game, the night before, we play Sega,” Birnbaum said. “We play the team we’ll be playing against. His ritual is that he can’t stop until he goes to bed winning. If it’s 4-3, with me winning, we might have to play until 2:30 a.m. I’m saying, ‘Ryan, we’ve got Washington tomorrow!’ ”

We’ll let you in on a little secret, Ryan. That last game, you didn’t really always win.

“Yeah, I never told him, but OK, I let him,” Birnbaum said.

There are other things--the high socks they wear, the way Leaf touches the end zone pylon before the game. Sometimes it’s all enough to concern Birnbaum.

“I told him, it’s important to realize that whether you do those things or not, the result’s not going to change. I tell him, ‘You don’t have to do that.’ ”

Leaf has diminished his rituals, but he won’t quit.

“That’s the thing--he’s had all this success,” Birnbaum said with a laugh. “He might have a problem if he goes pro. He might not have anybody like me around.”

Price is simply glad Leaf will be around for the end of the Rose Bowl.

“When Ryan Leaf has the ball at the end of a close game, I’m going to bet on him,” Price said.

“If he’s playing basketball and has the last shot, if he’s playing pool and has a shot at the 8-ball, I’m betting on Ryan Leaf. Racquetball too. Or golf. If he needs to drive it down the middle, he will.”