Coming into the Washington State game, Buck Allen had five straight games with at least 100 rushing yards under his belt. Marcus Allen has the USC record for most consecutive 100-yard rushing games with 11 in 1981. 

When Cody Kessler threw his fifth touchdown pass of the game to put USC up 44-10 over Washington State, Allen had only racked up 76 yards on the ground. With USC starting its next drive with less than eight minutes left in the game, it appeared that Allen's streak would be over. 

Backup quarterback Max Browne had been warming up on the sideline, signaling Kessler's day was done. Yet, USC's star running back was back on the field.

Did USC coach Steve Sarkisian not remember earlier in the game when one of his other top players, Su'a Cravens, suffered a non-contact injury? And that it caused everyone in Troy to collectively hold their breath while he was being helped to the locker room?

Or what about even before that when Washington State quarterback Connor Halliday screamed in agony after a Leonard Williams hit and was carted off the field? Halliday was later diagnosed with a broken fibula, ending his season and collegiate career. 

Halliday was well on his way towards setting the NCAA record for most passing yards in a season. Now, he will spend the next several months in recovery and hope that he can become the same quarterback again. All because of one play.

Injuries can happen on any play. With each team already dealing with an impact player injured, one would think that a coach would want to take out his starters once the game was decided.

Buck Allen carried the ball five more times after USC took that 44-10 lead. Five plays in which Allen could have suffered a similar misfortune of a nasty injury on a hit or a non-contact injury.

He actually fumbled the ball on the first of those carries, which could possibly have been the football gods hinting at Sark that no record is worth a risk of injury. After Washington State scored a touchdown to cut the insurmountable deficit to 27, USC started its next possession with 5:21 left.

So Sark ran the ball with Allen four more times. After Allen gained 16 yards on his final attempt, Sark immediately pulled his running back from the game. Allen finished with 111 rushing yards, increasing his 100-yard rushing streak to six games.

On Sunday night during his weekly teleconference with the media, Sark said that he was aware of getting Allen over the 100-yard mark and also felt that it was worthwhile for him to stay in late in the game.

Why in the world would Steve Sarkisian think it was "worthwhile" to risk one of his best and most important players on a depth-limited team to go after a school record?

USC only has 48 recruited scholarship players left on its roster. That doesn't include third-string running back James Toland IV, a walk-on who has 23 carries on the season. USC only has two healthy running backs this year on scholarship, Allen and Justin Davis. Those two have combined for 76.4 percent of USC's carries this season. 

And Sark decided to have his workhorse out there in the fourth quarter of a blowout to chase a record. 

Seriously Sark, what the Buck? 

The only statistics that Sark should care about are wins and losses. Risking one of your most important players to go after a different statistic is mind-boggling to me. 

This isn't the first time this season that Sark has left in his most irreplaceable players either.

A lot of people remember that Cody Kessler threw seven touchdown passes against Colorado, a USC record. How many remember that Sark left Kessler in a 49-21 game late in the third quarter after he threw his record-setting pass?

Risking your starting quarterback late in the game so he can be the answer to a USC trivia question in 20 years doesn't seem worth it to me. 

USC fans aren't going to remember what offensive records players set during your coaching tenure. They are going to remember your record and how many national championships you've won. 

Leaving your stars in for a statistical pat on the back really isn't focusing on the big picture, which is your record at the end of the season. The amount of touchdowns Kessler throws or the number of consecutive games that Allen runs for 100+ yards won't have any impact on the next game. But their health certainly will. 

The last USC running back to have five consecutive games with at least 100 rushing yards was Reggie Bush in 2005. 

In the game in which he could have extended that streak to six, USC played a road game against 1-5 Washington. Bush's last carry that game came midway in the third quarter, with the Trojans comfortably leading 37-17. He finished with 51 rushing yards.

Pete Carroll understood what Sark clearly did not last game: it's more important to keep your players healthy for important games later in the season than to go for a record. That's why USC under Carroll won 34 straight games between 2003 and 2005 before the aftermath of the Reggie Bush saga kicked in. 

Those 34 consecutive wins would have tied a record for longest winning streak in college football since the 1972 season. 

I'd figure that streak is a lot more "worthwhile" than that other streak that Sark is pursuing. 

Reach Senior Sports Editor Max Meyer by email.

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