TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) - John Parker Wilson's passing numbers are

down, and he couldn't be happier.

The quarterback for No. 2 Alabama has been able to rely on a

strong supporting cast, minimize mistakes and guide his team to

five consecutive wins going into Saturday's game with Kentucky.

Wilson has become the most prolific passer in Crimson Tide history

even though he hasn't had to do nearly so much passing thanks to a

series of early leads and a powerful running game.

"My freshman and sophomore year, we couldn't run the ball at

all, or like we'd like," Wilson said. "This year we've

established the running game, establishing ourselves up front, and

it's making everything else easier."

He has been the beneficiary of that ground game and a simplified

offense under new coordinator Jim McElwain that seems to suit him,

outshining more highly touted quarterbacks like Clemson's Cullen

Harper and Georgia's Matthew Stafford.

The Tide (5-0, 2-0 SEC) has run nearly twice as often as it has

thrown this season behind tailbacks Glen Coffee and Mark Ingram.

But Wilson's pass efficiency rating has jumped 22 points to 136

this season, fourth in the Southeastern Conference. He ranks only

10th in passing yards but none of the guys above him have matched

his 63 percent completion rate. Wilson has also thrown six

touchdown passes against just one interception.

"That's basically what I look at because now you're taking

completion percentage and eliminating bad plays, turnovers,

negatives and kind of factoring them all together and saying,

'What's the body of work here?"' Tide coach Nick Saban said. "I

know we haven't thrown the ball as much. We haven't put as much

pressure on John Parker as we did last year at times because of our

ability to run the ball.

"There's going to come a day when we have to do that

effectively and efficiently. So far we've been able to do it when

we've had to do it."

Wilson has no complaints. He has broken Brodie Croyle's career

marks for passing yards and touchdowns in the past two games. And a

quarterback who started the season with a 13-13 mark as a starter

hasn't seen this kind of success since he was helping lead Hoover

High School to two state titles.

Roommate Cory Reamer, a high school teammate, asked him about

the records one night recently. Wilson gave the same answer he'd

give publicly.

"I said, 'Man, that's something you've got to be real proud

of,"' said Reamer, a Tide linebacker. "He said, 'You know what,

it will be once the season's over with, but right now it's just

another week.' I think that's a great mentality to have toward

it."

If the successful running game has limited the need for passing,

so has the fact that Alabama has been protecting leads all season

and hasn't had to come from behind yet. Wilson was an efficient

13-of-16 for 205 yards in last week's win at Georgia.

"His game management was great," right tackle Mike Johnson

said. "He stayed calm in the huddle, he got in there and gave us

the play and let us know what was going on.

"John Parker just brings an overall attitude to our offense

that's pretty much like, this is what we need to do and we need to

get it done."

The word Saban has used to describe Wilson's approach since the

offseason has been "businesslike," citing his improved ability to

contain emotions that had sometimes led Wilson to make mistakes and

try to force balls into coverage. He had thrown 22 interceptions in

his first two seasons as a starter.

Center Antoine Caldwell started saying in the offseason that he

believed Wilson's final season would also be his finest.

"I said this since the beginning: I feel like this is going to

be the best year he's had," Caldwell said. "He's done a great job

to this point. He's becoming a leader on the field. Guys see him in

the huddle and he's got a new sense of confidence and leadership

about him. Everybody's just been rallying around him this year."

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)