Wyoming Running Back Named to Maxwell Award Watch List

LARAMIE -- "This is a guy that has the capability of being a face of the program."

That's becoming more of a reality by the day for Wyoming running back Samuel "Tote" Harris, who Monday was added to the Maxwell Award Watch List, an honor given to the top player in college football.

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"It's a huge deal for this program for Tote to be back," Wyoming head coach Jay Sawvel continued last January. "He's a really good player with a great personality. He's an offensive player, which automatically draws attention, in that regard. So, when you look through that whole list (of players who stayed at UW) and you look at people who you needed to have to win, that's a big, big deal."

Harris, who was a preseason All-Mountain West selection by both Phil Steele and Athlon Sports, led the Cowboys in rushing during his rookie campaign, amassing 558 yards and his lone touchdown on the ground. That's an average of nearly six yards a carry. He also snagged 16 passes out of the backfield for 184 yards.

The San Antonio-area native had his breakout performance in Boulder last September, rolling up a career-high 126 rushing yards, including a long of 50, in a loss to the Buffaloes.

Harris, who will now wear the No. 1 jersey, also eclipsed the 100-yard mark on the ground in a November tilt with Fresno State. He did that damage on just a dozen attempts. He suffered an MCL injury the following Saturday and missed the finale at Hawaii.

"Tote has all those same traits, all those same skills with quite a bit more horsepower in the engine," Sawvel said last April, comparing Harris to Xazavian Valladay, who amassed 3,281 rushing yards in his four-year career in Laramie. "Look, we expect him to have a big, big year."

The Maxwell Award watch list will once again incorporate a broad spectrum of Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) programs and conferences from coast to coast.

Fernando Mendoza from Indiana University was the 2025 Maxwell Award winner and was selected by the Las Vegas Raiders with the first overall pick of the NFL draft.

The Maxwell Football Club has once again partnered with Phil Steele Publications as selection committee partners. Phil Steele's College Football Preview is generally recognized as the most complete preseason magazine in the game.

Semifinalists for the Maxwell Award will be announced November 10, 2026, while the three finalists for the Maxwell Award will be unveiled November 24, 2026. The winner of the 90th Maxwell Award will be announced as part of the ESPN Home Depot College Football Awards Show held on December 10, 2026. The formal presentations of the Maxwell Award will be made at the Maxwell Football Club Awards on Saturday March 13, 2027, at the Coca Cola Roxy Theater in Atlanta, Georgia.

Questions concerning the 2026 Maxwell watch list can be directed to MFC Executive Director Mark Wolpert mwolpert@maxwellfootballclub.org or MFC Vice President of College Awards Rich Cirminiello rcirminiello@maxwellfootballclub.org.

ABOUT THE MAXWELL FOOTBALL CLUB – The Maxwell Football Club was founded in 1935 and is the oldest football organization of its kind in America. The Club recognizes excellence in performance at the high school, collegiate and professional levels of the game. The Maxwell Club is also deeply involved and fully vested in the community through programs to promote academic excellence, community volunteerism, and leadership. High school student-athletes around the country have an opportunity to participate in MFC Showcase events, free of charge, through the generosity of our corporate partners, NFL Foundation, College Sports Communicators, SRA Inc, Vertical Raise, Quinco Inc, the ETC Foundation and the Bradley Law Firm. To learn more about our story visit www.maxwellfootballclub.org.

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* A UW press release contributed to this report

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