Blacksburg, VA -- While the Heisman Trophy may be a long shot for Virginia Tech freshman running back Ryan Williams, the Doak Walker Award, given to college football's premiere running back, appears well within his reach.
Today, the Guaranty Bank SMU Athletic Forum Board of Directors announced today the 10 semifinalists for the 2009 Doak Walker Award and Williams is on the list.
Williams and Pittsburgh's Dion Lewis are the only freshmen on the list. And despite what many consider a down year for the conference, the ACC has three running backs on the list. In addition to Williams, the ACC's leading rusher, Clemson's C.J. Spiller and Georgia Tech's Jonathan Dwyer are also named as semifinalists.
Williams has earned the Atlantic Coast Conference's Rookie of the Week award six times this season. The talented freshman is the first ACC running back to rush for more than 1,100 yards in 2009 and needs only 157 yards to break Tech's freshman rushing record (1,265) set by Darren Evans last season.
The complete list of the 2009 Doak Walker Award semifinalists and their national ranking for rushing:
Donald Buckram (Jr.) UTEP (4th)
Jonathan Dwyer (Jr.) Georgia Tech (16th)
Toby Gerhart (Sr.) Stanford (2nd)
Mark Ingram (So.) Alabama (6th)
Dion Lewis (Fr.) Pittsburgh (7th)
Ryan Mathews (Jr.) Fresno State (1st)
Jacquizz Rodgers (So.) Oregon State (15th)
C.J. Spiller (Sr.) Clemson (44th)
Ben Tate (Sr.) Auburn (12th)
Ryan Williams (Fr.) Virginia Tech (9th)
About the Doak Walker Award
The 130 members of the Doak Walker Award National Selection Committee will cast their votes to determine the 2009 finalists. On Monday, November 23, three finalists will be named, and a second vote by the Doak Walker Award National Selection Committee will determine the recipient. The 2009 Doak Walker Award recipient will be announced live on The Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards on Thursday, December 10.
The Award is named after three-time SMU All-American running back and 1948 Heisman Trophy winner Doak Walker. Walker, who also punted, returned kicks and kicked extra points, led the Mustangs to two Southwest Conference Championships. He was drafted by the Detroit Lions and led the league in scoring his rookie year. During his six years with the Lions, he led the team to two NFL championships and was chosen All-Pro four times. Walker is a member of both the College and Pro Football Halls of Fame.
For more information about the Doak Walker award, visit http://smu.edu/doakwalker/
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