The Doak Walker Award’s preseason watch list for the 2026 season landed with one glaring absence: Isaac Brown.
Brown, who finished the 2025 season with an electric 8.75 yards per carry and 884 yards in just nine games after a hamstring injury limited his availability, was left off the 60-player list despite a strong resume that already includes a spot on the Maxwell Award Watch List. He’s also the fifth betting choice on a number of gambling platforms at 11-1 to win the Doak Walker Award.
The omission stands out even more given the broader context around the ACC and Louisville. The conference placed 12 running backs on the Doak Walker preseason list, and Brown is also a preseason first-team All-ACC selection. Still, his name did not make the cut.
A source within the University of Louisville confirmed that both Isaac Brown and Keyjuan Brown were submitted by UofL as candidates for the award. Even so, neither player appeared on the preseason 60-man list, despite what the source described as an on-time submission.
That leaves an obvious question hanging over the release: how does a tandem that combined for 1,588 rushing yards on 197 carries get overlooked? Or, put another way, why weren’t the Cardinal backs considered worthy of inclusion?
There is still time for that to change. The in-season deadline for inclusion comes in October, giving Isaac and Keyjuan Brown a chance to make their case after being left out this August.
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