TYLER, Texas — UTSA wide receivers David Amador II and AJ Wilson, running back Will Henderson III and quarterback Owen McCown have been selected to the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Watch List, SPORTyler announced Tuesday.
The Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award recognizes the top offensive player in Division I football who also exhibits the enduring characteristics that define Earl Campbell: integrity, performance, teamwork, sportsmanship, drive, community and tenacity; specifically, tenacity to persist and determination to overcome adversity and injury in pursuit of reaching goals. In addition, the nominee must meet one or more of the following criteria: Played football at and graduated from a Texas High School and/or currently playing at Texas D1 four-year college.
The watch list announced today will be narrowed to up to 16 semifinalists in November and then up to 5 finalists in December. They will be selected by broadcasters, commentators, journalists, fans, and previous winners. The winner will be announced in December and celebrated at The Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Banquet scheduled for Jan. 27, 2027, in Tyler. A player does not have to appear on the initial Watch List to be eligible to win the award.
Amador, who also appears on the Paul Hornung Award Watch List and Shriners Children’s 1000, caught 45 passes for 443 yards and four touchdowns as a redshirt sophomore in 2025. A versatile weapon, he also completed both of his pass attempts for touchdowns. The Galena Park North Shore High School product posted his third career 100-yard game with 113 yards and a pair of TDs on 10 receptions in the 48-26 home triumph over Tulane. He also tossed a 21-yard touchdown pass in the win over the Green Wave and earned honorable mention player of the week accolades from the Paul Hornung Award, the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award and the American Conference. In 29 career games, he owns 87 receptions, 921 receiving yards, six receiving TDs and 62 rushing yards on seven attempts to go with 3-for-3 passing for 52 yards and a pair of TD passes.
Henderson, who also was named to the Shriners Children’s 1000, rushed for 866 yards and six touchdowns on 125 attempts, good for an average of 6.9 yards per carry, and caught 19 passes for 132 yards and a pair of TDs during his redshirt freshman campaign in 2025. The speedster from Gilmer, Texas, logged three 100-yard games and his rushing yardage total is the second-most in a season by a freshman in school history. He gashed Charlotte for a season-high 185 yards and a score on 19 totes, an average of 9.7 yards per attempt and followed that with 146 yards on 19 carries in the 58-24 home triumph over East Carolina. He recorded his first career 100-yard game with 115 and two TDs on just five rushes in the 61-13 home win against Rice, while he capped the season with 59 yards and two scores on the ground to go with a 40-yard TD reception in the 57-20 victory over FIU in the First Responder Bowl.
McCown now appears on six preseason watch lists, as the redshirt senior also is a member of the Davey O’Brien Award, Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, Maxwell Award, Walter Camp Player of the Year and Shriners Children’s 1000 lists. The Rusk, Texas, native completed 277 of 410 passes for 2,995 yards and 30 touchdowns, good for a .667 completion percentage and 149.7 pass efficiency rating as a redshirt junior last fall. He logged a pair of 300-yard passing games, including a career night in the 48-26 home triumph over Tulane by completing 31 of 33 passes for a program-record .939 completion percentage, piling up 370 yards and four TDs. He was named Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award National Player of the Week and American Conference Offensive Player of the Week for his performance. The starting QB in each of the past 27 games dating back to the 2023 Frisco Bowl win, McCown will enter his final campaign with 6,861 passing yards at UTSA, which places him third in school history, along with 59 passing touchdowns, a .657 completion percentage and a 143.9 passing efficiency rating — all of which stand second on the program’s career charts.
Also a member of the Shriners Children’s 1000, Wilson played in all 13 games and earned a start at wide receiver in six contests in his debut season with the Roadrunners last fall. The Huntsville, Texas, native caught 31 passes for 528 yards and four touchdowns, averaging 17.0 yards per reception, which ranks fourth on the program’s single-season list. The Houston Christian transfer logged his first 100-yard game as a Roadrunner with 104 yards and a TD on five catches in the 48-20 home triumph over UIW. He also piled up 77 yards and a score on just two catches in the 61-13 victory over Rice and had five grabs for 87 yards in the 28-7 win at Charlotte.
The Roadrunners will kick off their 16th season of football and seventh under Traylor against UTRGV on Saturday, Sept. 5. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. at the Alamodome. UTSA also will host Colorado State (Sept. 26), South Florida (Oct. 8), Navy (Oct. 17), North Texas (Nov. 14) and Tulsa (Nov. 27 or 28). The Roadrunners will travel to Texas State (Sept. 12), Texas (Sept. 19), Rice (Oct. 3), Tulane (Oct. 24), Florida Atlantic (Nov. 5) and UAB (Nov. 21).
Tickets are on sale by visiting goUTSA.com/tickets or by calling the UTSA Ticket Office at 210-458-UTSA (8872). Current UTSA students receive free admission to all home games by downloading tickets via their Account Manager.
Roadrunners on 2026 Preseason Watch Lists
David Amador II — Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award, Paul Hornung Award, Shriners Children’s 1000
Bryce Grays — Allstate AFCA Good Works Team, Allstate Wuerffel Trophy
Will Henderson III — Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award, Shriners Children’s 1000
Owen McCown — Davey O’Brien Award, Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award, Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, Maxwell Award, Walter Camp Player of the Year, Shriners Children’s 1000
Owen Pewee — Shriners Children’s 1000
AJ Wilson — Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award, Shriners Children’s 1000
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