Tigers' RB Nathaniel Peat Named to Doak Walker Award Watch List

Peat is among the 74 running backs named to the watch list for the prestigious award.

Since the inception of the Doak Walker Award in 1990, the award has annually been given to the best running back in college football. 

In the storied history of the award, no Missouri Tigers running back has ever taken home the award. However, that could change this year. 

Senior Nathaniel Peat was listed among the 74 running backs on the 2022 Doak Walker Award watch list, released by the PwC SMU Athletic Forum on Wednesday.

As a transfer from the Stanford Cardinal, Peat will look to come into the Missouri offense and add another versatile weapon to work with. 

On a Stanford team that would finish their 2021 season with a disappointing 3-9 record, Peat was one of the few bright spots. He led the Cardinal in rushing, taking 79 carries for 404 rushing yards and three touchdowns. 

While those numbers don't jump off the page as overly impressive, Peat showed flashes of being a top running back that could come out more as a Tiger. 

Where Peat did most of his damage in 2021 though, was special teams as a kick returner, leading the Pac-12 with 663 kickoff return yards to average a whopping 24.6 yards per return. 

Peat has twice been named an All-Pac-12 kick returner by Phil Steele (2020, 2021), a 2021 All-Pac-12 honorable mention by Pro Football Focus and a 2020 All-Pac-12 honorable mention by the league coaches.

For a Tigers team looking to get back to contending in the SEC, adding a player of Peat's caliber was a huge get for coach Eli Drinkwitz. If he can play to his full potential, then the Missouri offense could take it to another level in 2022. 

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You can find Connor Zimmerlee on Twitter @Connorjz98

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