Wayne Knight

2025: Associated Press Second Team All-American all-purpose player Sports Illustrated Second Team All-American all-purpose player USA Today Second Team All-American all-purpose player On3 Second Team All-American all-purpose player Phil Steele Third Tram All-American all-purpose player HERO Sports Group of Five First Team All-American Paul Hornung Award Finalist Touchdown Club of Richmond Running Back of the Year First Team All-Sun Belt running back Sun Belt Football Championship Most Valuable Player All-ECAC Team Started all 14 games at running back Sun Belt Conference Rushing Champion JMU Single-Season Record for All-Purpose Yards (2,039) Ranked third nationally in all-purpose yards per game (145.64), seventh in yards per carry (6.63) and 15th in rushing yards per game (98.1) Led Sun Belt in rushing yards and all-purpose yards Associated Press National Player of the Week (Week 15) Two-time Paul Hornung Award Honor Roll (Week Five, Week Six) Had 207 carries for 1,373 rushing yards and nine touchdowns Also made 40 receptions for 397 receiving yards and a touchdown, while averaging 22.25 per kickoff return (4 ret.) and 9.47 per punt return (19 returns) Five 100-yard rushing performances and six games with at least 150 all-purpose yards Career-highs of 211 rushing yards and 234 all-purpose yards (title game record) with a career-long 73-yard touchdown vs. Troy in Sun Belt Football Championship (Dec. 5) Rushed for 151 rushing yards and a touchdown on 19 carries (7.9 avg.) while also caching four passes for 35 yards vs. Georgia Southern (Sept. 27); also tallied a career-best 199 all-purpose yards in Georgia Southern win Ran for 126 yards and a touchdown, which included a 58-yard score vs. Washington State (Nov. 22) Rushed for 110 yards with a long of 49 at Oregon (Dec. 20) in the College Football Playoff Also tallied 111 yards on the ground vs. Louisiana (Oct. 11) Had 197 all-purpose yards vs. App State, rushing for 94 and a score, making a career-high six receptions for 55 yards and gaining 48 yards on punt returns Gained 166 yards with two scores at Marshall (Nov. 8), running for 87 and a touchdown and tallying a season-high 79 receiving yards with a 49-yard touchdown catch to seal the win Rushed for 75+ yards in 11 games Caught three or more passes in nine games Season-long 22-yard punt return at Georgia State (Oct. 4) Season-long 29-yard kickoff return vs. Weber State (Aug. 30) 2024: Played in all 13 games, making two starts at running back Had 77 carries for 449 rushing yards and two touchdowns Averaged 5.8 yards per rush Also made 15 receptions for 137 receiving yards and two touchdowns Rushed for season-high 74 yards and touchdown while making two catches for 17 yards at Old Dominion (Nov. 16) Scored first two career touchdowns vs. Georgia State (Nov. 9), rushing for 18 yards and a score and making three receptions for 26 yards and an 18-yard TD grab First career 100-yard game with 61 rushing yards and career-best 41 receiving yards vs. Southern Miss (Oct. 26) Had career-long 59-yard rush and career-best 23-yard reception in USM win Career-high 12 rush attempts for 61 yards with a five-yard reception at App State (Nov. 30) Also ran for 61 yards and caught two passes for 20 yards and a touchdown vs. Marshall (Nov. 30) Had 63 rushing yards vs. Ball State (Sept. 28) Career-high four catches for 25 yards vs. Western Kentucky in Boca Raton Bowl (Dec. 18) Rushed for at least 60 yards in five games and had at least 75 total yards in three outings Caught multiple passes in five games 2024-25 Sun Belt Conference Academic Honor Roll JMU Athletic Director's Scholar-Athlete (Spring 2025) 2023: Played in four games, redshirting to retain a year of eligibility Had four carries for 23 yards and one catch for 11 receiving yards vs. Bucknell (Sept. 2) Career-long 22-yard rush in Bucknell game 2022: Played in eight games Had five carries for -8 rushing yards Also tallied five receptions for 63 yards Averaged 21.8 yards on four kickoff returns Had a season-best 32-yard reception at Old Dominion (Nov. 12) Season-long 35-yard kickoff return vs. Georgia State (Nov. 19) JMU Athletic Director's Scholar-Athlete (Spring 2023) High School: DIAA 3A All-State honoree as a sophomore, junior and senior Named All-Conference as a sophomore, junior and senior Four-year varsity letterwinner Helped Smyrna to 2021 3A state championship game Part of Smyrna's 2019 and 2020 Division I playoff teams Also played for Northeast Elite 7v7 Distinguished Honors Personal: Son of Wade Knight and Yolanda Miller Has two brothers, William and Yamir, and a sister, Yolanda His brother, Yamir, was a receiver at JMU for two seasons His brother, William, was a running back at Delaware Majoring in sociology