Davie, Fla. ? Ask Ricky Williams what’s new, and the list is longer than his latest touchdown run.

These days he’s tackling the works of author Carlos Castaneda. He’s savoring Barack Obama’s victory. With plans to become an osteopath, he’s taking college classes in writing and math.

Oh, and his burst is back. Miami Dolphins boss Bill Parcells noticed it last week at practice. So did general manager Jeff Ireland. Coach Tony Sparano saw it, too.

When Ricky ran, he looked faster. More explosive. Better.

“I saw a little bit of an extra gear,” Sparano said. “Jeff, Bill – they’re saying the same thing. It was a reason why we wanted to get Ricky a little more involved.”

Given a more prominent role Sunday, Williams had a breakaway run and breakout game. He scored on a 51-yard sprint, reached the 100-yard rushing mark for the first time since 2005 and helped the Dolphins win their third game in a row by beating Seattle 21-19.

The Dolphins are 5-4, but until last week Williams had played only a modest role in their surprising success. As a backup to Ronnie Brown, Williams showed only occasional flashes of the speed and power that helped him win the Heisman Trophy in 1998 and the NFL rushing title in 2002.

After playing only 13 games from 2004 to 2007, there were rumblings the 31-year-old Williams had lost a step. But against the Seahawks, when he took a straight-ahead handoff near midfield in Miami’s Wildcat formation, he dashed through a big hole and scored untouched.

“He came out of there like he was shot out of a cannon,” Sparano said.

When asked if he felt faster Sunday, Williams smiled.

“I’m always fast,” he said. “I just don’t get that much open space.”

He hasn’t been getting that much playing time, either. In the three games before Miami beat Seattle, Williams totaled 17 carries. He reached that number by halftime in his workhorse days – before retirement, violations of the NFL drug program and a suspension rendered him idle for much of the past four years.

Williams said he’s not unhappy about his reserve role this season, but added it’s difficult to contribute much with limited playing time.