First year Indiana running back Stephen Carr has been named to the Doak Walker Watch List, which goes to the top running back in college football.
Carr transferred to Indiana earlier this year from the University of Southern California, where he was recruited and coached by running backs coach Deland McCullough, who was at USC and is back at Indiana.
Carr, who hails from California, rushed for 2,123 yards and 31 touchdowns as a high school senior before setting in on Southern California.
While there as a freshman, Carr was coached by McCullough and the two immediately hit it off Carr said.
"He was a great recruiter as a coach. We built a great connection at USC. He welcomed me in and we got straight to business. We had a great relationship there. He has taught me a lot. Coming out of high school, didn’t know a lot about football. I just got the ball and ran and it worked out, thank God. He taught me how to read holes, how to call out d-linemen. We haven’t watched too much film, but I can’t wait until he gets back and we can chop it up and watch some film," Carr told the media this spring.
After four seasons in Los Angeles, Carr hit the NCAA Transfer Portal, opting to reunite with McCullough in Bloomington.
Carr, who was a five star recruit and is the first five star recruit to join the Hoosiers under Tom Allen, rushed for 1,329 yards on 264 carries (5.0 average) with 12 touchdowns in four seasons with USC. He also showed an ability to catch the ball out of the backfield, as he caught 57 passes for 421 yards and a touchdown. In addition, he returned 15 kickoffs for 321 yards and he appeared in 35 games, starting six for the Trojans. He made 2017 All-Pac-12 honorable mention in his lone season with McCullough.
Below is the release on Carr.
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana graduate student running back Stephen Carr is a preseason candidate for the Doak Walker Award, the PwC SMU Athletic Forum announced on Wednesday morning.
The Forum annually presents the award to the nation's top college running back. Carr joined IU as a transfer from USC on May 20, 2021. He earned his degree in communications in May 2021.
The Gardena, Calif., native rushed for 1,329 yards on 264 carries (5.0 average) with 12 touchdowns in 35 games (6 starts) with the Trojans. Carr caught 57 passes for 421 yards (7.4) with one score, and he returned 15 kickoffs for 321 yards (21.4). 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 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 2021 Doak Walker Award will be announced live on The Home Depot College Football Awards.
The award is named for SMU's three-time All-America running back Doak Walker. It is 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. Honoring the legends of sports for 32 years, the PwC SMU Athletic Forum celebrates outstanding success in athletics. Based in Dallas, the series features major figures from a variety of sports. The PwC SMU Athletic Forum includes four luncheons and the prestigious Doak Walker Award Presentation Banquet.
The Doak Walker Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which encompasses the most prestigious awards in college football. Founded in 1997, the NCFAA and its 25 awards now boast over 800 recipients, dating to 1935. Visit ncfaa.org and @NCFAA on Twitter to learn more about the association. The members of the NCFAA are unveiling their preseason watch lists over a 12-day period this month. Fourteen of the association's 25 awards select a preseason watch list and the NCFAA has spearheaded a coordinated effort to promote each award's preseason candidates.
----
• Talk about it inside The Hoops Forum or The Football Forum
• Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes
• Follow us on Twitter: @IndianaRivals
• Like us on Facebook.
