Brown Tabbed Doak Walker Award Candidate

DALLAS – Virginia’s Xavier Brown has been named a preseason candidate for the 2025 Doak Walker Award, the PwC SMU Athletic Forum announced Tuesday (Aug. 5). The Forum annually presents the award to the nation’s most outstanding college running back. 

A Fourth Team Preseason All-ACC selection, according to Athlon Sports, Brown appeared in 11 games last year and finished second on the team in both rushing yards (488) and rushing yards per game (44.4). He had a breakout game in UVA’s 43-24 road win over Coastal Carolina, when he rushed for a career-high 171 yards on nine carries. Brown had two touchdowns – including the go-ahead score – in the Cavaliers’ 24-19 road triumph at No. 23 Pittsburgh, where he also rushed for a career-high 15 carries. 

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 also 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 2025 Doak Walker Award will be announced Dec. 12, 2024 live on The Home Depot College Football Awards. 

The award is named for SMU’s three-time All-America running back Doak Walker. Each Tuesday of this season, the PwC SMU Athletic Forum will once again announce a Doak Walker National Running Back of the week. University athletic departments nominate candidates for the award and can continue to do so through October. 

Honoring the legends of sports for 36 years, the PwC SMU Athletic Forum celebrates outstanding success in athletics. Based in Dallas, the series features major figures from a variety of sports. The PwC SMU Athletic Forum includes four events and the prestigious Doak Walker Award Presentation Banquet. 

 The Doak Walker Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which encompasses college football’s most prestigious awards. The NCFAA’s 25 awards have honored more than 950 recipients since 1935. Visit NCFAA.org for more information.

Following is the remaining 2025 preseason watch list calendar: 

• Aug. 6: Biletnikoff Award 
• Aug. 7: Davey O’Brien Award 
• Aug. 8: Mackey Award/Rimington Trophy 
• Aug. 11: Bednarik Award