TCU Football: Bailey, Sanders Named To 2023 Doak Walker Award Watch List

TCU running backs Emani Bailey and Trey Sanders have been named to the watch list for the Doak Walker Award, which will be presented to the best running back in the nation at the end of the season.

The prestigious Doak Walker Award was created in 1989 to recognize the nation's premier running back for his accomplishments on the field, classroom achievement, and community citizenship. It is the only major collegiate football 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.

TCU is one of 11 schools with more than one candidate. A TCU player has won the Doak Walker Award once in its history. LaDainian Tomlinson won the 2000 Doak Walker Award, the same year he was a finalist for the Heisman.

Last year’s winner was Bijan Robinson (Texas). Other Big 12 players on the watch list include Javontae Barnes (Oklahoma), Tahj Brooks (Texas Tech), CJ Donaldson (West Virginia), RJ Harvey (UCF), Daniel Hishaw Jr (Kansas), Tony Mathis Jr (Houston), Devin Neal (Kansas), Richard Reese (Baylor), Aidan Robbins (BYU), and Treshaun Ward (Kansas State).

A total of 75 running backs from across the country are on the watch list. For the complete watch list, click here.

In his first year as a Horned Frog, Bailey had an 8.1 yards per carry average that led the Big 12 last season. He placed fourth on TCU with 250 yards rushing while adding seven receptions, playing behind NFL-bound Kendre Miller (New Orleans Saints) and Emari Demercado (Arizona Cardinals). Bailey's 30-yard touchdown run with 24 seconds left in the second quarter at West Virginia gave TCU a 28-21 halftime lead it would not relinquish. He rushed for a season-best 58 yards on 11 carries while adding two receptions in the victory over Iowa State.

Sanders is in his first season at TCU after transferring from Alabama, where he totaled 528 yards rushing and three touchdowns. He ran for 67 yards in the Crimson Tide's 2021 College Football Playoff win over Cincinnati and a career-high 80 yards in a 2020 victory against Mississippi State. Coming out of IMG Academy, Sanders was rated the nation's No. 1 running back by 247Sports and the No. 3 overall player in the country by Rivals.