What's the MODEL & TYPE#'s of the engine, so we can identify which carb it has.

IF you scooped out THAT much dirt, that's NOT a good sign. How much went through to the cylinder/piston???

A "few" drops of gas isn't enough. Use a couple teaspoons worth.

Also check for spark to make sure it's not an ignition issue. You might want to pull the spark plug to make sure it's not covered in "crud".

Thanks Bill! the engine decal is missing, but I have a pic attached.

Try this link-
It should be on a metal plate-

http://www.outdoordistributors.com/Briggs_And_Stratton/briggsmodelid.html

i looked at the link, examined the whole engine, not to be found. i do have some more info. I cleaned the spark plug and it fires (tested). I got the engine started w/ the filter off so i could see the carb. a mix of oil and gas is coming from the fuel line. Also, yesterday, I looked under the deck and saw some nylon rope biding the shaft, not i had to cut it free, ti was wrapped around the blade as well. i'm worried that this distressed the motor and blew a gasket or ring.

UUHHH, that carb does not have a fuel line! It pumps fuel up from the tank that it is bolted onto. What you think is the fuel line is actually a tube that sends excess gasses back to the carburetor!
Where the carb bolts to the fuel tank, there is a rubber gasket, that acts as a pump to send fuel up into the carb. Make sure that gasket is ok. any tears, folds, or other things might give you problems.

Did you overfill the oil?

The hose Rusty described is a crankcase vent hose. It allows excess combustion gasses (blow by) to be "recycled" into the combustion chamber.
Too high of an oil level can cause foaming (amongst other things" and can be carried through the vent hose.
It CAN also potentially blow a gasket/seal because pressure "might" build up, depending on how overfull it is.

A side view pic of the carb may be helpful.

thanks for the feeback. ok, I disconnected the crackcase vent hose and the motor works fine. There is a small amount of oil coming from the vent hose, not much (a few drops a minute) but enough to make the engine sputter. Attached is a side picture. I don't think this is the serial number but it on the side of the motor. ybsxs158va 274460

thanks
HH

ybsxs158va 274460 is the smog label.

That's a flat head motor, so a blown head gasket wouldn't "pressurize" the crank case.

Either the rings are badly worn, allowing excessive combustion gasses past them (which "escape" to the crank case) or the oil level is TOO full.

NOTE: The proper way to check the oil is:

1. Remove stick, wipe it clean, then put it back in its hole, all the way, and then pull it out again. This gives the proper reading of the oil level!
2. The oil in the engine can and will stay high on the stick even after it has been shut down since last week, or last time it was run. Thats why i say to do it the way i do it.
   I have an old Toro Wheel-Horse, with a 10 hp Briggs on it. I hadn't run it for 3 weeks, but did start it up yesterday. Before starting it, i removed the dip-stick, and it had oil on it, about 6 or more inches higher than normal!. After i wiped it and re-stuck it, i found the oil to be at the correct level. But, if the oil is real low, the dip-stick can still read higher than it should.