Evans Named to Walter Camp Player of Year Watch List

Eastern Michigan University Athletics
5-6 minutes 8/11/2023
NEW HAVEN, Conn. (EMUEagles.com) — The Walter Camp Football Foundation today, Aug. 11, named Eastern Michigan University senior running back Samson Evans (Crystal Lake, Ill./Prairie Ridge/Iowa) as one of 45 players on the Preseason Watch List for the 2023 Walter Camp Player of the Year Award, the nation's fourth-oldest individual college football accolade.
USC quarterback Caleb Williams, the 2022 Walter Camp Player of Year, headlines the 2023 watch list, which includes 38 offensive players (20 quarterbacks, 11 running backs, five receivers/tight ends and two offensive lineman) along with seven from the defensive side of the ball. Players from 35 different schools representing 11 conferences (including independents) are represented on the preseason watch list. Ohio State has four players on the watch list, while seven schools (Florida State, LSU, Michigan, Notre Dame, Penn State, Texas and Washington) each have two.
Evans earned his first all-conference honors in 2022 after a historic season in the backfield for EMU. The Crystal Lake, Ill., native scored his 27th career rushing touchdown against Central Michigan, Nov. 25, to move into first place in Eastern Michigan program history in the category during a 2022 season which saw him rush for 100+ yards in four contests, a career-best mark. His 29 scores put him in second on EMU's all-time touchdowns list (rushing and receiving). With 1,166 yards on the ground last season, Evans is the 14th EMU player to rush for a total of 1,000 yards or more in a single season. The senior's total was good for eighth all-time in single-season laurels at EMU. His 15 touchdowns in 2022 ranked first in the MAC and 15th nationally.
"We are proud to continue the great work of Walter Camp and recognize the best college football players in the nation," Foundation president Tony Mortali said. "This watch list is a great start to what is shaping up to be another exciting year of college football."
The 2023 watch list will be narrowed to 10 semifinalists in mid-November. The 2023 Walter Camp Player of the Year recipient, which is voted on by the 133 NCAA Bowl Subdivision head coaches and sports information directors, will be announced on ESPN's College Football Awards Show in December. The winner will then receive his trophy at the Foundation's 57th annual national awards banquet in New Haven, Conn. in early 2023.
2023 Walter Camp Player of Year Preseason Players to Watch
Braelon Allen, RB, Wisconsin
Joe Alt, OL, Notre Dame
Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia
Chevan Cordiero, QB, San Jose State
Dontay Corleone, DL, Cincinnati
Blake Corum, RB, Michigan
Jalon Daniels, QB, Kansas
Jayden Daniels, QB, LSU
Emeka Egbuka, WR, Ohio State
Tommy Eichenberg, LB, Ohio State
Samson Evans, RB, Eastern Michigan
Quinn Ewers, QB, Texas
Olu Fashanu, OL, Penn State
Dillon Gabriel, QB, Oklahoma
Frank Gore, Jr., RB, Southern Miss
Taylen Green, QB, Boise State
Frank Harris, QB, UTSA
Marvin Harrison, Jr., WR, Ohio State
Sam Hartman, QB, Notre Dame
TreVeyon Henderson, RB, Ohio State
Bucky Irving, RB, Oregon
Quinshon Judkins, RB, Ole Miss
Jaylin Lucas, RB/KR, Indiana
Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina
Grayson McCall, QB, Coastal Carolina
J.J. McCarthy, QB, Michigan
Kool-Aid McKinstry, DB, Alabama
Joe Milton, QB, Tennessee
Jer'Zhan Newton, DL, Illinois
Bo Nix, QB, Oregon
Rome Odunze, WR, Washington
Jaydn Ott, RB, California
Michael Penix, Jr., QB, Washington
Harold Perkins, LB, LSU
Michael Pratt, QB, Tulane
Will Rogers, QB, Mississippi State
Austin Reed, QB, Western Kentucky
Kurtis Rourke, QB, Ohio
Raheim Sanders, RB, Arkansas
Nicholas Singleton, RB, Penn State
Jordan Travis, QB, Florida State
Jeremiah Trotter, LB, Clemson
Jared Verse, DE, Florida State
Caleb Williams, QB, USC
Xavier Worthy, WR, Texas
Walter Camp, "The Father of American football," first selected an All-America team in 1889. Camp – a former Yale University athlete and football coach – is also credited with developing play from scrimmage, set plays, the numerical assessment of goals and tries and the restriction of play to eleven men per side. The Walter Camp Football Foundation (www.waltercamp.org) – a New Haven-based all-volunteer group – was founded in 1967 to perpetuate the ideals of Camp and to continue the tradition of selecting annually an All-America team.