Oct. 28, 2004
LAS VEGAS - UNLV explosive senior runner Dominique Dorsey has been added to the Official Candidate List for the Doak Walker Award, which annually goes to college football's top running back.
Dorsey, who currently leads the Mountain West Conference and ranks 11th in the nation with 118 yards per game, is the first Rebel to join the prestigious list since "Jersey" Joe Haro in 2002.
In his first fall as the team's full-time starting tailback, Dorsey's 945 yards after eight games put him just 55 away from turning in the seventh 1,000-yard rushing season in school history.
With five such efforts this fall, he has moved into a tie for second at UNLV with 10 career 100-yard rushing games, which is remarkable considering he has only started 11 games in four seasons. Dorsey's 2,518 career yards put him fourth all-time at UNLV and only 18 yards behind third-place Michael Morton (1978-81) and 138 yards shot of second-place Kirk Jones (1983-86). The native of Tulare, Calif., currently ranks 14th in the nation in all-purpose yards (154 YPG) and stands third all-time at the school in that category with 3,828 yards. He also leads the MWC and ranks 37th nationally in kickoff return average (22.6 YPR).
The Doak Walker Award was created in 1989 to recognize the nation's premier running back for his accomplishments on the field, achievement in the classroom and citizenship in the community. It is the only major collegiate football award that requires candidates to be in good academic standing and on schedule to graduate within one year of other students of the same classification. Dorsey, who is a candidate for academic all-conference honors this season, is on track to graduate in 2005.
The SMU Athletic Forum Board of Directors will select eight semifinalists on Nov. 15 and the Doak Walker Award Selection Committee will choose the winner later that month. Voters include former players, members of the media and special representatives.
The recipient of the 2004 Doak Walker Award will be announced live on ESPN's The Home Depot College Football Awards Show on Thursday, Dec. 9. The Doak Walker Award Presentation Banquet will be held at The Fairmont Hotel in Dallas, Texas, on Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2005.
Another MWC performer, BYU's Luke Staley, took home the award in 2001 while Michigan's Chris Perry was last year's winner.
