TYLER, Texas — The finalists for the 2023 Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award were announced Thursday afternoon.
The Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award recognizes the top offensive player in Division I football who overcomes adversity to reach their goals and who also exhibits the enduring characteristics that define Earl Campbell: integrity, performance, teamwork, sportsmanship, drive, community, and tenacity.
The nominee must also meet one or more of the following criteria such as be born in Texas and/or graduated from a Texas High School and/or played at a Texas-based junior college or four-year Division I Texas college.
The selection committee picked below the five college football players:
- Jonathon Brooks, UT Running Back – Hallettsville, TX (Hallettsville HS) Big 12
- Ollie Gordon, II, Oklahoma State Running Back – Fort Worth, TX (Euless Trinity HS) Big 12
- Ashton Jeanty, Boise State Running Back – Jacksonville, FL (Lone Star HS, TX) Mountain West
- Jalen Milroe, Alabama Quarterback – Katy, TX (Tompkins HS) SEC
- Kaidon Salter, Liberty Quarterback – Cedar Hill, TX (Cedar Hill HS) CUSA
Jonathon Brooks
Brook is a sophomore at the University of Texas who had a career-high as a running back with 187 carries for 1,139 yards (6.1 ypc) and 10 touchdowns, while also catching 25 passes for 286 yards and one touchdown before sustaining an ACL injury during the 10th game of the season. His 1,139 rushing yards on the year are 14th-most in a season in program history.
He is a Doak Walker Award semifinalist and All-Big 12 Second Team selection by the conference’s coaches and Associated Press, appeared in 11 games with eight starts.
Ollie Gordon, II
As a running back for Oklahoma State, Gordon leads the FBS in several major categories including rushing yards (1,614), yards from scrimmage (1,940), 100-yard rushing games (8), 150-yard rushing games (5), 250-yard rushing games and carries of at least 30 yards (14), 40 yards (7) and 70 yards (2). He is second in rushing touchdowns (20), total touchdowns (21), and all-purpose yards (1,940).
Recently, the sophomore was named to the American Football Coaches Association All-America first team. He is Oklahoma State’s first unanimous All-America selection since Chuba Hubbard in 2019.
Gordon has been honored by the Walter Camp Football Foundation, the Football Writers Association of America, the Associated Press, and The Sporting News. He has been awarded the Doak Walker Award, the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year, and a seventh-place finish in the voting for the Heisman Trophy, while also receiving the most votes for the Heisman by a running back this season.
Ashton Jeanty
The Boise State running back ranks second nationally in yards from scrimmage (1,814) and all-purpose yards per game (164.9). He has 1,262 rushing yards and 552 receiving yards, scoring 19 total touchdowns. Jeanty is the only player in the FBS with multiple 50+ yard rushing TDs and multiple 50+ yard receiving TDs (two of each). Jeanty became the first FBS player since 2016 to reach 1,000 rushing yards and 500 receiving yards in a 10-game span.
The sophomore has been recognized several times as Mountain West Offensive Player of the Week, Doak Walker Honor Roll, Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Player of the Week Honorable Mention twice and Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Player of the Week, Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year and All-MW First Team.
USA Today and CFN have named Jeanty to the First Team All-American and he was named Second Team All-America by the Associated Press and Action Network. He was also named Honorable Mention All-America by CBS Sports.
Jalen Milroe
As a sophomore, Milroe earned the starting quarterback position and was named as one of the permanent team captains for the University of Alabama.
He earned second-team All-SEC recognition from the Associated Press. Milroe ranks second in the conference and fourth nationally in passer efficiency rating at 177.5 ... also second in the SEC and fifth in Division I with a 15.89 yards per completion mark ... averaging 10.41 yards per pass attempt to rank second in the conference and country.
Milroe has completed 171-of-261 passes for 2,718 yards and 23 touchdowns compared to six interceptions and has also rushed 140 times for 468 yards and 12 scores ... tied for fourth in the conference and 24th nationally for rushing touchdowns at any position.
He has been recognized for several awards such as a finalist for the Manning Award, Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Honor Roll, Maxwell Award Player of the Week, SEC Offensive Player of the Week, and many more.
Kaidon Salter
As Liberty University's quarterback, Salter has a 15-2 career record, including 13-0 in 2023. He led his team to the first-ever perfect regular season record in school history. He has seven games passing for 225 or more yards, 11 games passing for two or more touchdowns, four 100-yard rushing games, and four games rushing for multiple touchdowns.
Salter has been recognized for several awards such as two-time Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award National Player of the Week, four-time CUSA Offensive Player of the Week, 2023 CUSA First-Team All-Conference Player, 2023 CUSA Most Valuable Player, and many more.
He also leads all quarterbacks in CUSA with 31 passing touchdowns, is ranked second in CUSA with 12 rushing touchdowns, and is ranked No. 1 in CUSA in passing efficiency. Nationally, Salter is ranked No. 1 in passing yards per completion (16.98), No. 2 in rushing TDs by a quarterback (12), No. 3 in passing efficiency (182.2), and No. 3 in points responsible for (258).
The 2023 Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award winner will be announced at the award banquet on Jan. 10, 2024 in Tyler.