Harrison a Walker Award finalist

Washington State running back Jerome Harrison has been named a finalist for the Doak Walker Award, given to college football’s top running back.

Harrison, along with fellow finalists Reggie Bush from USC and Memphis’ DeAngelo Williams, will travel to Orlando, Fla., for a Dec. 7 college football awards ceremony.

“I think they’re pretty good,” Harrison said of his chances. “It’s a running back award, so I hope they don’t go off hype and they go off stats. DeAngelo and Reggie Bush are both good running backs, but I think I might have had a better season this year.”

The Washington State senior currently leads the nation with 1,900 rushing yards, and unless Williams goes for more than 300 in his final game of the season Harrison will hang onto that distinction.

Harrison is second in the country in yards per game behind Williams, and is also second in all-purpose yardage behind Bush.

“It feels good to get the attention I feel that I deserve,” said Harrison, who is also one of 10 finalists for the Walter Camp Award. “It’s very exciting. I called my mom and dad and we sat on the phone and screamed.”

Harrison capped off his two-year career with the Cougars by rushing for 207 yards on 36 carries Saturday in the Apple Cup. Amazingly, even with the gaudy rushing totals, Harrison was never named Pac-10 offensive player of the week – largely because of his team’s 4-7 record.

After the Apple Cup, WSU students carried Harrison off the field – something the always sly running back said was one of the more frightening moments of the day.

“It was fun and scary,” he said. “Because I was thinking, ‘Just please don’t drop me.’ “

A WSU official said Harrison has already been named first-team on at least one All-American list, though it’s not yet public which one. There also remains an outside chance that the Cougar running back could earn a trip to New York City as a Heisman Trophy finalist.

“It would be nice,” Harrison said, “but I wouldn’t get my hopes up too high.”