University of Colorado Athletics
Six More Buffs Earn Preseason Recognition
August 20, 2026 | Football
BOULDER—Six Colorado football players earned spots on national preseason watch lists this week, with wide receivers Kam Perry and Danny Scudero named to the Biletnikoff Award Preseason Watch List, running back Richard Young named a Doak Walker Award candidate, running back DeKalon Taylor named to the Comeback Player of the Year Watch List, and wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. and defensive back Boo Carter selected to the Senior Bowl Top 300.
BILETNIKOFF AWARD
Perry and Scudero were named Wednesday to the 2026 Biletnikoff Award Preseason Watch List by the Tallahassee Quarterback Club Foundation, making the Buffaloes one of 10 programs nationally with multiple selections on the 45-player list.
The Biletnikoff Award annually recognizes the college football season's outstanding FBS receiver. Any player who catches a pass, regardless of position, is eligible for the award, which is based on actual performance rather than potential — receivers are frequently added to the watch list as the season unfolds.
Perry and Scudero, both in their first season in Boulder, give Colorado one of the most productive incoming receiver duos in the country, having combined for 131 catches, 2,273 yards and 16 touchdowns in 2025.
Perry, a fifth-year receiver from Marietta, Ga., arrives after a breakout 2025 season at Miami (Ohio), where he played in all 14 games with 12 starts and caught 43 passes for 976 yards and six touchdowns — an average of 22.7 yards per catch. He earned First Team All-MAC honors and was named the RedHawks' offensive MVP, topping 75 receiving yards in eight games with four 100-yard performances.
Scudero, a fourth-year receiver from San Jose, Calif., led the nation in receiving yards during the 2025 regular season with 1,297 at San Jose State, averaging 108.1 yards per game. He started all 12 games, finishing with 88 receptions — fourth-most in the country — and 10 touchdowns on his way to Second Team All-America honors from the Associated Press, AFCA, Walter Camp and Phil Steele. His four touchdown catches against Wyoming set a San Jose State program record and tied the Mountain West single-game mark.
Colorado's history with the award is headlined by Travis Hunter, who won the 2024 Biletnikoff as the nation's top receiver. Nelson Spruce was one of 10 semifinalists in 2014, and Michael Westbrook was one of 20 semifinalists in 1994, the award's first year. In all, Buffaloes have earned Biletnikoff recognition 16 times, with Hunter and LaJohntay Wester both honored in 2024 — the last time CU placed multiple receivers on the award's radar in the same season.
The Biletnikoff Award will announce its semifinalists Nov. 16, finalists Nov. 24, and the winner Dec. 11 at the Home Depot College Football Awards.
DOAK WALKER AWARD
Young, a fourth-year running back from Lehigh Acres, Fla., was named a preseason candidate earlier this week for the 2026 Doak Walker Award, presented annually by the PwC SMU Athletic Forum to the nation's most outstanding college running back.
Young joined the Buffs after three seasons at Alabama, where he saw action in 15 games and scored five touchdowns, including two on 23 carries in 2025. A consensus four-star recruit out of Lehigh Senior High School, Young was rated the No. 55 player nationally and the No. 4 running back in his class by the 247 Composite after rushing for 4,693 yards and 42 touchdowns on 571 carries across four prep seasons, topping 800 yards in each of them.
Colorado owns one of the proudest histories with the award: Rashaan Salaam won the Doak Walker in 1994, the same season he claimed the Heisman Trophy. Chris Brown was one of 10 semifinalists in 2002, and Phillip Lindsay was one of 11 semifinalists in 2017. Young is CU's first Doak Walker candidate since 2023.
University athletic departments can continue to nominate candidates through October. Ten semifinalists and three finalists will be named in November, and the winner will be announced live on the Home Depot College Football Awards on Dec. 10.
COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Taylor, a fifth-year running back from Longview, Texas, is one of 94 players from 59 schools named Thursday to the 2026 Comeback Player of the Year Watch List, released by College Sports Communicators in association with The Associated Press and the Fiesta Sports Foundation.
The award, presented since 2018, recognizes college football student-athletes for overcoming injury, illness or other circumstances. At the end of the season, a panel of college football writers, editors and sports information directors selects three winners, who are honored at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl.
Taylor started fast in 2025, hauling in an 8-yard touchdown catch on Colorado's opening drive of the season — the fastest the Buffs had scored a first touchdown of a season since 2018 — before an injury ended his year after four games. He finished with 83 rushing yards on 19 carries and 10 receptions for 106 yards and two touchdowns.
A Buffalo has won the award before: running back Jarek Broussard was one of three Comeback Player of the Year honorees in 2020.
SENIOR BOWL TOP 300
Moore Jr. and Carter were selected Thursday to the Senior Bowl Top 300, the list of draft-eligible prospects identified by the Senior Bowl scouting department after evaluating more than 2,000 players from all levels of college football since February.
Moore, a fourth-year receiver from Bellflower, Calif., joined the Buffs after three seasons at Texas, where he played in 37 games with 18 starts and totaled 77 receptions for 988 yards and 11 touchdowns, including 38 catches for 532 yards and four scores in 2025.
Carter, a third-year defensive back from Chattanooga, Tenn., came to Boulder after two seasons at Tennessee, where he played in 21 games with five starts. In 2025, he forced three fumbles — tied for third in the FBS entering Week 10 — among 25 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss and a sack. As a true freshman in 2024, he led the SEC in punt return average (16.5) and earned SEC All-Freshman Team honors as a return specialist.
Selection to the Top 300 marks these prospects as players with the talent and potential to play at the NFL level, though the Senior Bowl's evaluation process continues throughout the season.
Perry, Scudero, Young, Taylor, Moore, Carter and the Buffaloes open the 2026 season Thursday, Sept. 3, at Georgia Tech (6 p.m. MT, ESPN). The home opener is Saturday, Sept. 12, against Weber State at Folsom Field (1:30 p.m. MT, ESPN+).
BILETNIKOFF AWARD
Perry and Scudero were named Wednesday to the 2026 Biletnikoff Award Preseason Watch List by the Tallahassee Quarterback Club Foundation, making the Buffaloes one of 10 programs nationally with multiple selections on the 45-player list.
The Biletnikoff Award annually recognizes the college football season's outstanding FBS receiver. Any player who catches a pass, regardless of position, is eligible for the award, which is based on actual performance rather than potential — receivers are frequently added to the watch list as the season unfolds.
Perry and Scudero, both in their first season in Boulder, give Colorado one of the most productive incoming receiver duos in the country, having combined for 131 catches, 2,273 yards and 16 touchdowns in 2025.
Perry, a fifth-year receiver from Marietta, Ga., arrives after a breakout 2025 season at Miami (Ohio), where he played in all 14 games with 12 starts and caught 43 passes for 976 yards and six touchdowns — an average of 22.7 yards per catch. He earned First Team All-MAC honors and was named the RedHawks' offensive MVP, topping 75 receiving yards in eight games with four 100-yard performances.
Scudero, a fourth-year receiver from San Jose, Calif., led the nation in receiving yards during the 2025 regular season with 1,297 at San Jose State, averaging 108.1 yards per game. He started all 12 games, finishing with 88 receptions — fourth-most in the country — and 10 touchdowns on his way to Second Team All-America honors from the Associated Press, AFCA, Walter Camp and Phil Steele. His four touchdown catches against Wyoming set a San Jose State program record and tied the Mountain West single-game mark.
Colorado's history with the award is headlined by Travis Hunter, who won the 2024 Biletnikoff as the nation's top receiver. Nelson Spruce was one of 10 semifinalists in 2014, and Michael Westbrook was one of 20 semifinalists in 1994, the award's first year. In all, Buffaloes have earned Biletnikoff recognition 16 times, with Hunter and LaJohntay Wester both honored in 2024 — the last time CU placed multiple receivers on the award's radar in the same season.
The Biletnikoff Award will announce its semifinalists Nov. 16, finalists Nov. 24, and the winner Dec. 11 at the Home Depot College Football Awards.
DOAK WALKER AWARD
Young, a fourth-year running back from Lehigh Acres, Fla., was named a preseason candidate earlier this week for the 2026 Doak Walker Award, presented annually by the PwC SMU Athletic Forum to the nation's most outstanding college running back.
Young joined the Buffs after three seasons at Alabama, where he saw action in 15 games and scored five touchdowns, including two on 23 carries in 2025. A consensus four-star recruit out of Lehigh Senior High School, Young was rated the No. 55 player nationally and the No. 4 running back in his class by the 247 Composite after rushing for 4,693 yards and 42 touchdowns on 571 carries across four prep seasons, topping 800 yards in each of them.
Colorado owns one of the proudest histories with the award: Rashaan Salaam won the Doak Walker in 1994, the same season he claimed the Heisman Trophy. Chris Brown was one of 10 semifinalists in 2002, and Phillip Lindsay was one of 11 semifinalists in 2017. Young is CU's first Doak Walker candidate since 2023.
University athletic departments can continue to nominate candidates through October. Ten semifinalists and three finalists will be named in November, and the winner will be announced live on the Home Depot College Football Awards on Dec. 10.
COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Taylor, a fifth-year running back from Longview, Texas, is one of 94 players from 59 schools named Thursday to the 2026 Comeback Player of the Year Watch List, released by College Sports Communicators in association with The Associated Press and the Fiesta Sports Foundation.
The award, presented since 2018, recognizes college football student-athletes for overcoming injury, illness or other circumstances. At the end of the season, a panel of college football writers, editors and sports information directors selects three winners, who are honored at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl.
Taylor started fast in 2025, hauling in an 8-yard touchdown catch on Colorado's opening drive of the season — the fastest the Buffs had scored a first touchdown of a season since 2018 — before an injury ended his year after four games. He finished with 83 rushing yards on 19 carries and 10 receptions for 106 yards and two touchdowns.
A Buffalo has won the award before: running back Jarek Broussard was one of three Comeback Player of the Year honorees in 2020.
SENIOR BOWL TOP 300
Moore Jr. and Carter were selected Thursday to the Senior Bowl Top 300, the list of draft-eligible prospects identified by the Senior Bowl scouting department after evaluating more than 2,000 players from all levels of college football since February.
Moore, a fourth-year receiver from Bellflower, Calif., joined the Buffs after three seasons at Texas, where he played in 37 games with 18 starts and totaled 77 receptions for 988 yards and 11 touchdowns, including 38 catches for 532 yards and four scores in 2025.
Carter, a third-year defensive back from Chattanooga, Tenn., came to Boulder after two seasons at Tennessee, where he played in 21 games with five starts. In 2025, he forced three fumbles — tied for third in the FBS entering Week 10 — among 25 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss and a sack. As a true freshman in 2024, he led the SEC in punt return average (16.5) and earned SEC All-Freshman Team honors as a return specialist.
Selection to the Top 300 marks these prospects as players with the talent and potential to play at the NFL level, though the Senior Bowl's evaluation process continues throughout the season.
Perry, Scudero, Young, Taylor, Moore, Carter and the Buffaloes open the 2026 season Thursday, Sept. 3, at Georgia Tech (6 p.m. MT, ESPN). The home opener is Saturday, Sept. 12, against Weber State at Folsom Field (1:30 p.m. MT, ESPN+).
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