The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
No. 1 Football’s Baxter, Wisner recognized on Doak Walker Award watch list
08.05.2025 | Football
Five Longhorns have won the Doak Walker Award, which is given annually to the nation’s most outstanding college running back.
AUSTIN, Texas – No. 1 Texas Football's CJ Baxter and Quintrevion Wisner were selected to the preseason watch list for the Doak Walker Award, the PwC SMU Athletic Forum announced Tuesday. The award is presented annually to the nation's most outstanding college running back.
Baxter has earned a spot on the watch list for the second-consecutive season. Baxter and Wisner look to join a prestigious quartet of Longhorns who have won the Doak Walker Award, which began in 1990. Ricky Williams was a two-time winner, bringing home the trophy in 1997 and 1998, while Cedric Benson collected it in 2004, D'Onta Foreman won the honor in 2016, and Bijan Robinson earned it 2022. Texas' five all-time Doak Walker Award trophies are tied for the most by an FBS school with Wisconsin. In 2023, former UT running back Jonathon Brooks was named a semifinalist for the award. Baxter and Wisner are the third Texas running back duo to be selected to the preseason watch list for the award in the last four years. Last season, Baxter and Jaydon Blue were both placed on the watch list, and Bijan Robinson and Roschon Johnson were selected in 2022.
Baxter is a sophomore running back from Orlando, Fla., who has played in 12 games with six starts in three seasons. He missed the entire 2024 season after sustaining a season-ending injury during fall camp. As a true freshman in 2023, Baxter earned a second-team All-America nod by The Athletic, Freshman All-American Honorable mention by College Football Network, and honorable mention All-Big 12 honors, in addition to being honorable mention Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year. Baxter also received preseason second-team All-SEC accolades on offense in July. In his first season on the 40 Acres, Baxter ran the ball 138 times for 659 yards (4.8 ypc) and five touchdowns while also catching 24 passes for 156 yards. His 659 rushing yards are the 12th-most for a Longhorn freshman in program history. Making the start at running back in Texas' season-opening victory against Rice on Sept. 2, 2023, he became the first true freshman running back to start for the Longhorns since Ricky Williams in 1995. In a win versus Kansas State, he had 10 carries for 90 yards and one touchdown, including a 54-yard run. In the road victory at Iowa State, he established career highs in carries (20), rushing yards (117) and receptions (5), recording the first 100-yard rushing performance of his career. In the College Football Playoff semifinal against No. 2 Washington in the Sugar Bowl, he rushed nine times for 64 yards (7.1ypc) and one touchdown, while hauling in two passes for 39 yards, including a career-long 31-yard reception.
Wisner is a third-year player who has competed in 29 career games with 12 starts, garnering 2024 Third-Team All-SEC praise, 2025 preseason First-Team All-SEC recognition while claiming a spot on the preseason watch list for the 2025 Maxwell Award. As a sophomore in 2024, he played in 15 games with 12 starts and rushed for a team-leading 1,064 yards and five touchdowns on 226 carries (4.7 ypc). The Glenn Heights, Texas, product had the third-most receptions on the team, hauling in 44 catches for 411 yards (7.1 ypc) and a score. The 44 receptions were the second-most in a single-season by a UT running back, while the 411 receiving yards were the third-most. Altogether, he accumulated 1,375 all-purpose yards and accounted for six touchdowns during his sophomore season. He pieced together four 100-yard rushing performances with all four coming against SEC or CFP opponents. Additionally, he's the only returning 1,000-yard rusher in the SEC going into 2025 season.
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 live on The Home Depot College Football Awards on Dec. 12, 2024.
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.
Baxter, Wisner and the Longhorns kick off the 2025 season on the road at No. 2 Ohio State at 11 a.m. CT Saturday, Aug. 30, inside Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. The game will broadcast as part of FOX's Big Noon Kickoff, and ESPN's College GameDay will broadcast live from the Ohio State University campus. College GameDay will air for three hours from 8-11 a.m. CT, hosted by Rece Davis, Lee Corso, Desmond Howard, Pat McAffee, Nick Saban, Kirk Herbstreit and other ESPN personalities. It will be the final show for longtime ESPN personality Lee Corso as he is set to retire following Week 1 of the 2025 season.
