The Question:
Who is the better running back, Shaun Alexander or Anthony Thomas?

Shaun Alexander		Anthony Thomas
HT: 6-1 | WT: 220 | AGE: 22 | YR: Senior By Rodney Gilmore Special to ESPN.com I like Shaun Alexander against the Michigan defense more than I like Anthony Thomas going against the Alabama defense. Alexander is the more versatile back, scoring touchdowns this season in three different ways: rushing, receiving and returning a kick. Michigan doesn't get the same production out of Thomas in the running game. In fact, the Wolverines have had one of their worst seasons running the ball in their history, averaging 115 yards a game. That's not a typical Michigan team running the football. Alexander, meanwhile, rushed for 1,383 yards -- averaging 126 a game -- and 19 rushing touchdowns. People think that he is not a powerful back, that he is more of a shifty runner. But Alexander is a slasher. He can run between the tackles and is also great on the toss sweep. Plus, he can catch the ball; he had 25 receptions, four for touchdowns. Alexander is healthy going into the Orange Bowl. He has recovered from his sprained ankle, giving him the advantage in one-on-one matchups against Michigan linebackers Ian Gold and Dhani Jones and strong safety Tommy Hendricks. He can make catches down the field and stretch the defense. That's a unique quality to find in a running back. Receiver Freddie Milons will stretch the Michigan defense and open up the running game for Alexander. But one potential problem could be the absence of All-America tackle Chris Samuels, who is questionable with a sore knee. That may hurt the running attack, but it wouldn't eliminate Alexander's ability to have a strong performance.		HT: 6-2 | WT: 221 | AGE: 22 | YR: Junior By Bill Curry Special to ESPN.com When practice got under way last April, I got a phone call. "Bill, I don't know about the offense, but this defense can run. We have speed." My Tuscaloosa, Ala., source was right, as usual. The Michigan Wolverines will see the fastest defense they have faced this season in their Orange Bowl date with Alabama. Great speed complicates game plans. Protecting the passer, running the ball outside, and executing today's sophisticated screen game -- those weapons can be stopped by 11 people who can run and tackle. That leaves one basis for an offensive plan: Take a big, tough offensive line, a great back like Anthony Thomas with guts and come off the football for 60 minutes, mixing a good dose of play-action passing. Midway through this season, we might have figured the line and the play-action were present, with the back a huge question mark. No more. The A-Train is operating on time, and the derailed Wolverines of October are once again chugging toward a fast finish, riding a four-game winning streak. Thomas has come of age. Consider: In the last five games, in a display of power, speed and endurance, he has carried 145 times, gained 735 yards and scored nine touchdowns. He has had as many as 42 carries in a single game, has blocked, caught passes and led his team into a BCS game. The Alabama defense realizes that all its speed will come to naught if the Tide cannot untrack the A-train.