Kam Davis, Ousmane Kromah on Doak Walker Award watchlist

A year ago, Kam Davis and Ousmane Kromah were sharing a backfield at Florida State.

This fall, they’ll be playing hundreds of miles apart.

But the former Dougherty and Lee County stars found their names together again Tuesday when both were selected for the preseason watch list for the Doak Walker Award, presented annually to the nation’s top college running back.

Davis, now a junior at Liberty, and Kromah, entering his sophomore season at Florida State, were among 62 running backs named to the list.

It’s the latest connection between two players Albany-area football fans watched become stars just a few miles apart.

Davis starred at Dougherty before signing with Florida State and beginning his college career in Tallahassee in 2024. A year later, Kromah joined him after a standout career at Lee County.

Kromah had initially committed to Georgia before flipping to Florida State, giving the Seminoles two running backs from Southwest Georgia in 2025.

They spent one season as teammates before Davis entered the transfer portal and landed at Liberty.

Now Davis gets a fresh start with the Flames after appearing in 13 games over two seasons at Florida State.

He carried 52 times for 173 yards as a freshman in 2024. His opportunities decreased last season, when he appeared in four games and rushed four times for 51 yards and a touchdown.

Liberty apparently has plenty of options in its backfield.

The Flames were the only program in the country to place three running backs on the Doak Walker watch list. Davis was joined by Peyton Jones, a transfer from Duke, and Kayne Udoh, who played at Arizona State last season after beginning his career at Army.

Kromah, meanwhile, remains in Tallahassee for his second season with the Seminoles. He was one of two Florida State running backs selected for the watch list, joining senior Quintrevion Wisner.

Davis and Kromah made names for themselves long before they became college teammates.

Davis was one of Dougherty’s biggest offensive weapons during his high school career, while Kromah emerged as one of the nation’s most highly recruited running backs at Lee County.

Their high school careers were separated by only a short drive. Their college careers eventually brought them to the same locker room.

Now those careers have split in different directions.

Davis will try to make his mark at Liberty. Kromah will try to do the same at Florida State.

And both will begin the season with their names among the running backs being watched for one of college football’s top individual awards.

The Doak Walker Award selection committee will name 10 semifinalists in November before choosing three finalists later that month. The winner will be announced Dec. 10 during the College Football Awards.

Doak Walker Award Preseason Watch List

Kedrick Reescano (Sr.), Arizona

Sutton Smith (Sr.), Arkansas

Kenyon Clay (Sr.), Arkansas State

Godspower Nwawuihe (So.), Army

Evan Dickens (Jr.), Boston College

Adam Mohammed (Jr.), California

Vaughn Blue (Jr.), Central Michigan

Richard Young (Sr.), Colorado

Mel Brown (Sr.), Colorado State

Ashton Grey (Jr.), East Carolina

Braydon Bennett (Sr.), Eastern Michigan

Jadan Baugh (Jr.), Florida

Leonard Farrow (Sr.), Florida Atlantic

Ousmane Kromah (So.), Florida State

Quintrevion Wisner (Sr.), Florida State

Justice Haynes (Sr.), Georgia Tech

Malachi Hosley (Sr.), Georgia Tech

Makhi Hughes (Sr.), Houston

Ca’Lil Valentine (Jr.), Illinois

Khobie Martin (So.), Indiana

Turbo Richard (Jr.), Indiana

Kamari Moulton (Jr.), Iowa

George Pettaway (Sr.), James Madison

Dylan Edwards (Jr.), Kansas

Yasin Willis (Jr.), Kansas

Kam Davis (Jr.), Liberty

Peyton Jones (Sr.), Liberty

Kanye Udoh (Sr.), Liberty

DeJuan Williams (So.), Maryland

Manny Covey (Jr.), Memphis

Mark Fletcher Jr. (Sr.), Miami

Cam Edwards (Sr.), Michigan State

Ahmad Hardy (Jr.), Missouri

Herschel Turner (Jr.), Nevada

Demon June (Fr.), North Carolina

Jayden Scott (So.), NC State

Jahiem White (Sr.), North Texas

Telly Johnson Jr. (Jr.), NIU

Bo Jackson (So.), Ohio State

Caleb Hawkins (So.), Oklahoma State

Devin Roche (Jr.), Old Dominion

Kewan Lacy (Jr.), Ole Miss

Jordon Davison (So.), Oregon

AJ Newberry (Jr.), Oregon State

Carson Hansen (Sr.), Penn State

James Peoples (Jr.), Penn State

Fame Ijeboi (So.), Purdue

Lucky Sutton (Sr.), San Diego State

Jabari Bates (Sr.), San Jose State

Kendrick Raphael (Sr.), SMU

Matt Fuller (So.), South Carolina

Raleek Brown (Sr.), Texas

Hollywood Smothers (Jr.), Texas

Cameron Dickey (Jr.), Texas Tech

CJ Miller (Jr.), Toledo

Duke Watson (Jr.), UCF

Wayne Knight (Sr.), UCLA

Peyton Lewis (Jr.), Virginia

Marcellous Hawkins (Sr.), Virginia Tech

Cam Cook (Sr.), West Virginia

Ajay Allen (Sr.), Western Kentucky

Samuel Harris (So.), Wyoming