New Orleans ? Deuce McAllister is a tough, stout country guy who spends much of his free time in the offseason hanging around with old friends in central Mississippi.

Reggie Bush is a fast, flashy southern Californian with loads of endorsement deals and a marketing agent that always seems to be around.

They’re different in seemingly every way, and in all the right ways to complement one another as the one-two punch that is the New Orleans Saints’ running game.

“The key is to have just enough versatility where you feel like you are getting both backs involved in the game,” Saints coach Sean Payton said. “It’s not always easy. Each week it changes a little bit, but both of them understand exactly what their role is. It’s just about having a good mix and it’s not always an exact science.”

Bush and McAllister combined for 195 yards rushing in a 27-24 playoff victory over the Philadelphia Eagles last Saturday. They accounted for all three Saints touchdowns, with McAllister scoring two.

In the NFC Championship game this Sunday, they’ll face a Chicago Bears team that yielded 127 yards rushing to Seattle.

During the regular season, McAllister ran for 1,057 yards, while Bush, whom the Saints also use as a receiver out of the backfield or in the slot, rushed for 565 yards.

“We have so many formations where they’re both in the game,” quarterback Drew Brees said. “Even though only one of them is getting the ball in those situations, the other one has an active role.”

Whenever Bush went in motion or presented himself to Brees for a pass, for example, defenders tended to follow. So if Brees handed the ball to McAllister crashing through the line instead, McAllister found less traffic in the middle to prevent him from breaking into the secondary.

Even when Bush has been on the sidelines, McAllister has been effective running behind the blocking of fullback Mike Karney.

“I’m a big guy, so you know, if you get 230 pounds moving, and my fullback, he’s 255 and pushing along, we’re a hard tandem to stop,” McAllister said.