PROVO -- Sophomore Harvey Unga joins 42 of the nation’s top college running backs as a candidate for the 2008 Doak Walker Award.
"I really am speechless," Unga said. "To even be compared and be a candidate for the same award that Luke Staley won is amazing. This is an honor I've dreamed about and worked towards, but never thought could happen. It's an honor and I'm very happy."
Unga returns for his sophomore season after receiving freshman All-America honors in 2007. The 2007 Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year set the league freshman rushing record with 1,227 yards, averaging 94.4 yards rushing per game. He led the Cougars with 13 touchdowns, set the BYU freshman record with seven 100-yard games and became the first-ever running back in BYU history to run for over 1,000 yards.
"Harvey certainly deserves this honor, based on his performance last season and what we expect from him this year," BYU head coach Bronco Mendenhall said.
Three other MWC players join Unga on the list, including TCU’s Joseph Turner, UNLV’s Frank Summers and Darrell Mack of Utah.
Semifinalists for the award will be selected on Nov. 10, and the Doak Walker Award National Selection Committee will cast votes to determine the recipient on Dec. 1. The National Selection Committee consists of former NFL All-Pro and college All-America running backs, media members and selected special representatives.
The recipient of the 2008 Doak Walker Award will be announced live on ESPN on The Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards on Thursday, Dec. 11. The Doak Walker Award Presentation Banquet will be held at the Hilton Anatole Hotel in Dallas, Texas, on Friday, February 6, 2009.
The award, in its 19th year, 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.