The PwC SMU Athletic Forum announced today that Clemson running back Will Shipley has been named the Doak Walker National Running Back of the Week for his performance in Clemson’s 27-21 win against No. 14 Syracuse last Saturday. More information from the PwC SMU Athletic Forum is included below.
DALLAS (SMU) – Clemson running back Will Shipley rushed for a career-high 172 yards and two touchdowns as the Tigers remained undefeated with a 27-21 comeback victory over previously unbeaten Syracuse. The performance earned him the Doak Walker National Running Back of the Week Award for the Oct. 22 weekend games.
The 5-11, 205-pound sophomore from Weddington, NC, hit a 50-yard touchdown with 11:26 to play to give Clemson the lead for good, rallying from an 11-point deficit in the fourth quarter to give the Tigers their 38th straight home win, an Atlantic Coast Conference record. Overall, Clemson is now riding a 14-game winning streak.
The 100-yard game was the seventh of Shipley’s career and the eighth time he has scored multiple touchdowns. Saturday’s scores were the 20th and 21st of his career as Clemson punted more than 60 times on the season for 293 yards. To go along with his 27 yards, Shipley added 53 on two kickoff returns and 17 receiving yards on three catches to finish the day with 242 all-purpose yards, four more than his previous career high set in Week transferred to Florida State.
The Tigers are idle this week before traveling to Notre Dame for a prime-time game Nov. 5 on NBC at 7:30 PM ET.
Other contenders for the honor in Week 8 included:
– Roman Hembry, Maryland: The redshirt freshman rushed for a career-high 179 yards – his fourth career 100-yard game – and scored three touchdowns as the Terps topped Northwestern, 31-24. One play after Northwestern scored to tie the game at 24, Hembry broke off a career-long 75-yard run with 3:22 left to play to put the Terps ahead for good.
– Dae Dae Hunter, Liberty: The sophomore ran 23 times for 213 yards and a touchdown as the Flames scored 38 unanswered points in a 41-14 blowout of BYU. Hunter had an 80-yard run, the third-longest in program history. The 213 rushing yards are the most by a Liberty player since 2008, and Hunter’s 31 receiving yards in the game gave him 244 all-purpose yards on the day.
– Deneric Prince, Tulsa: The senior rushed for a game-high 231 yards on 20 carries as Tulsa won at Temple last Friday, 27-16, despite an early 10-0 deficit. Prince had Tulsa’s first 200-yard game since 2017, which included an 84-yard score, the fourth longest in school history. It was Prince’s fourth 100-yard game and first of the season. He also added his first touchdown reception, an 18-yarder in the first half.
The Doak Walker Award presented by the PwC SMU Athletic Forum has been given to the nation’s starting quarterback since 1990. For the first time, the award is recognizing a national running back of the week this season. A 20-person selection committee from the award’s full voting body of media and past winners selects the weekly recipient. On July 20, the list of preseason candidates was released, and the semifinalists for the award will be named on November 22. A week later, the three finalists will be announced.
The 2022 Doak Walker Award winner will be announced live at The Home Depot College Football Awards, televised by ESPN on Dec. 8. The annual banquet, which will honor the winner and recipient of the 2022 PwC Doak Walker Legends Award, will be held in February on the SMU campus.
The Doak Walker Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which includes college football’s most prestigious awards. NCFAA’s 25 awards have honored more than 800 recipients since 1935. Visit NCFAA.org for more information.
For more information on the Doak Walker Award, contact Jeff Lockhart at the PwC SMU Athletic Forum, visit doakwalkeraward.com and follow on Twitter at @DoakWalkerAward.
