Tahj Brooks named to Doak Walker Award watch list

DALLAS – Texas Tech senior running back Tahj Brooks was named a preseason candidate for the 2023 Doak Walker Award, the PwC SMU Athletic Forum announced on Wednesday morning. The annual award honors the nation’s top college running back in the FBS.

Brooks, who has been Texas Tech’s leading rusher each of the last two seasons, enters 2023 with the possibility of becoming the first Red Raider since Baron Batch in 2010 to lead the team in rushing over three-consecutive seasons. Brooks and SaRodorick Thompson Jr. formed one of the top 1-2 running back combos over the previous three seasons in Lubbock, but since Thompson moved on to the NFL, Brooks is poised for an even more productive season in 2023. Furthermore, Brooks was Texas Tech’s highest-graded offensive player a season ago, finishing at 79.0 by Pro Football Focus.

The PwC SMU Athletic Forum Board of Directors will name ten semifinalists in November, and three finalists, as voted on by the Doak Walker Award National Selection Committee, will be announced in November. The committee will cast a second vote in December to determine the recipient. The National Selection Committee consists of past recipients, former NFL All-Pro and college All-America running backs, media members and selected special representatives.

The recipient of the 2023 Doak Walker Award will be announced live on The Home Depot College Football Awards.

About the Doak Walker Award
The award is named for SMU’s three-time All-America running back Doak Walker. It is the only major collegiate award that requires all candidates to be in good academic standing and on schedule to graduate within one year of other students of the same classification.

-TECH-

Release provided by MATT BURKHOLDER Texas Tech Athletics