NMSU RB Larry Rose III on Doak Walker watch list
DALLAS – NM State running back Larry Rose III has been selected as a preseason candidate for the 2016 Doak Walker Award, announced the PwC SMU Athletic Forum onThursday. This award is presented annually to the nation’s top college running back. Rose III was also placed on the Maxwell Award watch list at the beginning of July.
After completing an outstanding sophomore year in which he led theSunBelt Conference (SBC) with 1,651 rushing yards on 240 carries, Rose III was named to the Associated Press All-America Third Team. He was the only SBC student-athlete chosen for this prestigious honor following the 2015 season. Rose III was also the first Aggie to earn this recognition since Karl Dean, who was selected to the Third Team in both 1974 and 1975.
In addition to All-American honors and leading the league in rushing yards, Rose III scored a career-high 14 touchdowns and was named the SBC’s Offensive Player of the Year. After running for 1,102 yards as a freshman, Rose III became the first back-to-back 1,000-yard rusher for NM State since Denvis Manns rushed for 1,000 yards in four consecutive seasons (1995-98).
The Fairfield, Texas, native broke the NM State all-time single season rushing record just 10 weeks into the season with a 191-yard performance against UL-Lafayette. Overall, Rose III finished the season ranked sixth all-time in SBC single season rushing yards.
The sophomore racked up three 200-yard rushing games and seven 100-yard rushing games. He rushed for a career-high 260 yards against Rio Grande rival New Mexico, but the highlight of his season was a 212-yard, four touchdown rushing performance against Idaho on Oct. 31. Rose III scored two touchdowns in the final 3:56 of the game to force overtime. He then added a touchdown in extra time to guide NM State to victory.
Rose III also had a league-leading 1,934 all-purpose yards. He had four 200-yard all-purpose games and nine 100-yard all-purpose games. Rose III earned back-to-back SBC Offensive Student-Athlete of the Week awards after standout performances against Idaho and Texas State.
Additionally, Rose III garnered 283 receiving yards and two touchdowns on 30 receptions. This included a flat-pattern pass, which Rose III carried 77 yards for a touchdown at Texas State.
