UVA running back kevin parks was named to the 2014 preseason Doak Walker Award Watch List, PwC SMU Athletic Forum announced Thursday. The Doak Walker Award is given annually to the nation’s best running back.
Parks (Sr., Salisbury, N.C.) is a preseason All-ACC honoree and is the league’s leading returning rusher from 2013 when the tailback became the first UVa player to rush for over a 1,000 yards (1,031) since Alvin Pearman did so in 2004. Parks’ 2,474 career rushing yards are the most in the ACC among active players and No. 8 all-time in the UVa record book. CFPA listed Parks on its preseason 40-man watch list for its running back of the year.
The PwC SMU Athletic Forum Board of Directors will name the semifinalists on Nov. 18, and the Doak Walker Award National Selection Committee will cast votes to determine the finalists, who will be announced on Nov. 24. The committee will cast a second vote beginning on Dec. 1 to determine the recipient. 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 2014 Doak Walker Award will be announced live on The Home Depot College Football Awards on Thursday, Dec. 11, on ESPN. The Doak Walker Award Presentation Banquet will be held in Dallas, Texas, in Feb. 2015.
The award, in its 25th year, is named for SMU’s three-time All-America running back Doak Walker. It’s 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.
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