Jonathon Brooks named a Doak Walker Award semifinalist
Texas running back Jonathon Brooks was named a semifinalist for the Doak Walker Award on Tuesday, the PXC SMU Athletic Forum announced. Brooks, who suffered a torn ACL versus TCU, rushed for 1139 yards and 10 touchdowns and caught 25 passes for 286 yards and a score before his season ended.
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A junior from Hallettsville, Brooks didn’t start the season as the Longhorns’ lead back as CJ Baxter earned starts versus Rice and Alabama. However, Brooks earned more and more carries as the early part of the season went along and Baxter suffered early bumps and bruises. After accumulating 109 yards on the ground over the first two games, Brooks then rattled off 100-yard efforts in six of his last eight games. The lone exceptions were a 99-yard performance at Houston and a 98-yard day versus BYU.
His outing against the Kansas Jayhawks was the best of his career and his first ever 200-yard game. Brooks had 21 carries for 218 yards and two touchdowns, also catching one pass for 18 yards. His 2023 is the 26th 1000-yard season in school history. His 1139 yards is 14th most in a season in Texas football history.
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The Longhorns have had four different players win a total of five Doak Walker Awards. Ricky Williams took home the honor in back-to-back years in 1997 and 1998. The late Cedric Benson collected the award in 2004. D’Onta Foreman received the billing of the nation’s top back in 2016. Bijan Robinson was the most recent Longhorn recipient, winning in 2022.
Three finalists for the 2023 Doak Walker Award will be announced a week from today and the winner will be unveiled live on ESPN during The Home Depot College Football Awards on December 8. The formal presentation of the award will take place on the SMU campus at the annual banquet scheduled for February 16, 2024.
The 2023 Doak Walker Award Semifinalists:
- Jonathon Brooks – Texas
- Tahj Brooks – Texas Tech
- Marcus Carroll – Georgia State
- Blake Corum – Michigan
- Ollie Gordon II – Oklahoma State
- Omarion Hampton – North Carolina
- R.J. Harvey – UCF
- Damien Martinez – Oregon State
- Cody Schrader – Missouri
- Kimani Vidal – Troy
