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The most disappointing team in a disappointing conference, Arizona State, has a lot to fix during its bye week.

"There's no magic wand in any of this stuff that you're gonna get done in a five-day period," said coach Dennis Erickson, whose team is riding a four-game losing streak and is 2-4 at the midway point of the season. "A lot of people seem to think, 'You gotta do this or you gotta do that,' and you can't."

The Sun Devils will "spend time against ourselves" all week, Erickson said, trying to improve every aspect of their team.

There is no doubt what their top priority will be — running the ball.

"Probably 1 and 1A," Erickson said.

The Sun Devils are ranked No.116 in the country — fourth-to-last — with 83.67 rushing yards per game. Senior Keegan Herring missed three of the team's first four games with a hamstring injury. Junior Dimitri Nance has rushed for 52 yards per game.

And ASU just finished a stretch against three ranked teams — Georgia, Cal and USC. Erickson said the Trojans' defense is as good as he has ever seen at the college level.

"They just don't let you breathe," he said.

In the Pac-10 this season, rushing is an indication of success.

The conference has six teams ranked in the top 55 nationwide — No. 6 Oregon, No. 33 Stanford, No. 36 Cal, No. 46 USC, No. 47 Oregon State and No. 55 Arizona.

Not coincidentally, those teams occupy the top six spots in the conference. Combined, they are 24-12 overall, 14-5 in conference play.

The remaining four Pac-10 teams are ranked No. 107 and lower. Washington (107), Washington State (111), UCLA (112) and Arizona State are a combined 5-19 and 2-11 in the Pac-10.

"It's an important stat," UCLA coach Rick Neuheisel said. "With the ability to run the ball, you take pressure off other portions of your football team. You become able to control the clock.

"It just goes on and on. It's a very important number. Those that can run usually have their day."

Oregon is ranked sixth in the nation with 275.14 yards per game despite running a spread offense, which is thought by many to be more of a passing vehicle.

Coach Mike Bellotti figures that, when he first installed the offense four years ago, the Ducks were throwing for about 300 yards and rushing for 100 or 150.

Now, he said, the numbers have flip-flopped.

"I think a lot of people's perception is, you run the spread offense to throw the football," he said. "It's actually been the greatest enhancement to the running game we've had."

If you think running's not important, ask a team that cannot.

Washington coach Tyrone Willingham said a solid running game "is a pretty strong indicator" of success.

"There are so many things that feed from running the football that make a difference," he said.

It is the difference, at least this year, between success and disappointment.