Washington State’s Max Borghi named to Biletnikoff Award watch list

Although his involvement in Washington State’s passing game won’t be as heavy as it once was, Cougars running back Max Borghi was still named to the award given to college football’s most outstanding receiver.

Borghi was one of 51 college football players named to the Biletnikoff Award watch list on Thursday. While most watch list recipients are wide receivers, any player who catches a pass – wide receiver, tight end, slot back or running back – is eligible to receive the award.

In his lone game appearance last season, Borghi rushed for 95 yards with an eight-yard touchdown and caught one pass against Utah. Though he had just one reception in 2020, Borghi still enters the 2021 season third in school history for catches by a running back (140). He’s also fourth in WSU history with 29 total touchdowns and fifth with 20 rushing touchdowns.

Borghi was a pass-catching threat in his first two seasons at WSU playing for Mike Leach and the Air Raid offense. As a sophomore he had 1,435 all-purpose yards and 16 total touchdowns, the second-most in the Pac-12, and was the only player in the Power Five with at least 800 rushing yards, 550 receiving yards and 16 total touchdowns after rushing for 817 yards and 11 touchdowns while catching a team-high 86 passes for 597 yards and five scores.

The nomination for Borghi comes just one day after he was named to the watch list for the 2021 Doak Walker Award, which is given to the nation’s top running back.