Chart: How the best have won

In the past five years of Prep Bowl championship games, 25 of the 31 teams that won ran more than they passed. About 81 percent of the winning team's offensive plays — about four out every five — were rushing attempts. They gained an average of nearly 265 yards on the ground and accounted for 103 touchdowns, or more than three per game. They averaged about 109 yards passing on six to seven completions per game, completing about 61 percent of their passes.

2008-2012 totals (31 prep bowls)

Total plays: 1,760

Rushing: 1,431

Passing: 329

Yards from scrimmage: 11,573

Rushing: 8,201

Offensive TDs: 141

Rushing: 103

Passing: 38

2012 Prep Bowl: One yard passing by Eden Prairie, no completions for Hutchinson, Clinton-Graceville-Beardsley.

516 Rushing yards by Hutchinson. That number produced nine touchdowns.

368Passing yards by Edgerton-Ellsworth, which hit on 23 of 31 passes. Five of those were for touchdowns.

2010 Prep Bowl: Cromwell gained 527 yards on the ground and threw only one pass (incomplete)

97.9Percentage of running plays by Cromwell, which had 47 rushing attempts to its one pass attempt.

2009 Prep Bowl: Cretin-Derham Hall and New London-Spicer gained more yards in the air than on the ground, but still rushed the ball more often than they threw it.

40-98New London-Spicer's paltry rushing stats. It went 15-for-19 for 288 yards in the air.