EBELL MAKES IT A SPECIAL NIGHT.

Byline: VINCENT BONSIGNORE

VENTURA - As a youngster, Tyler Ebell came to Larrabee Stadium on Friday nights to watch his heroes from Ventura High School play football.

But like most restless little kids, he usually did more playing around than watching. Most of the time, Ebell and his buddies from his youth football teams would be playing touch football on a stretch of dirt in the corner of the stadium.

Just a bunch of kids being kids.

But every once in a while something from the actual game would catch Ebell's attention, and he'd stop for a few seconds to watch.

``I always remember looking over and seeing someone do something special,'' said Ebell, Ventura High's record-breaking running back. ``That's what I remember most. Guys making big plays.''

On Saturday, while playing on the same field he came to so often as a little kid and starring for the same team he always dreamed of being part of, Ebell leaped into history, becoming the national record holder for rushing yards in a season during Ventura's 34-21 victory over Lompoc in the Southern Section Division IV semifinals.

Ebell, who came into the game needing 187 yards to surpass previous record holder Travis Henry of Frostproof, Fla., pounded the Braves in a relentless performance, rushing for 319 yards on 38 carries to give him 4,220 yards in 13 games this year.

Henry ran for 4,087 in 1997.

Ebell, a 5-foot-10, 185-pounder who will play at UCLA next fall, shattered the record with a 9-yard run late in the third quarter.

Larrabee Stadium, stuffed to the limit with a standing-room only crowd, rose to its feet when Ebell broke the record.

Many of them were little kids who idolize Tyler Ebell.

Ventura advances to the Southern Section final for the first time since 1985. The Cougars face Arroyo Grande next Saturday.

Afterward, Ebell, who finished with five touchdowns, giving him 61 on the year to pass current UCLA star DeShaun Foster as the state single season touchdown leader, wasn't focused on the records.

``It just means we won the game, actually I don't even care about all (the records),'' Ebell said. ``As long as we won, the records are going to come like they did. We just put it away, played a great game and now we're going to the finals.''

It was a typical Ebell effort. Ventura was trailing 14-13 when he passed Henry. Lompoc, a big, physical team from the Northern League, wasn't flashy, just efficient. The Braves methodical Double Wing offense had been giving the Cougars trouble.

But when Ebell broke right, then sliced into the Braves secondary on his way to the record, he seemed to breathe life into Ventura.

On the same drive, Ebell broke off a 13-yard run to put the ball at the Lompc 7, then scored on the next play to put the Cougars ahead for good, 21-14.

He added a 12-yard touchdown later in the game to make it 27-14, then put an explanation point on the night with a brilliant 49-yard run to put it out of reach.

For a player some scouts question because of his lack of size, Ebell keeps showing he's durable enough to put an offense on his back and carry it through a game and a season.

He's been doing it all year against defenses that scheme all week to stop him.

``It's a great feeling because it was a hard-fought game, hard-nosed throughout, and we showed we're a championship team,'' Ebell said.