Coleman Honored Again, Ranks High Nationally in Rushing

Originally posted on Washington Huskies on SI
By Dan Raley | Last updated Sep 3, 2025 7:14 PM ET

Sitting down for a post-game interview and the clock pushing midnight, Jonah Coleman facetiously complained about not getting his rest following the University of Washington's 38-17 season-opening victory over Colorado State.

If it was a normal night, he would have been in bed 90 minutes earlier.

Yet the thing about the 5-foot-9, 220-pound Coleman is he always comes ready to play, no matter what time it is, what stadium he's in or what kind of mood he's in.

While his Husky football team was maddeningly inconsistent in 2024, Coleman was the same guy for every game, though Jedd Fisch wisely sat him down and sacrificed his numbers midway through blowouts at Iowa and Penn State when it was pointless to keep him on the field.

Against Colorado State, this senior from Stockton, California, piled up 177 yards and 2 touchdowns rushing on 24 carries. The yardage was two shy of his career best and the number of rushes was a career high.

"We always want Jonah touching the ball," UW offensive coordinator Jimmie Dougherty said. "Good things happen."

After earlier being named co-Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week, Coleman picked up another honor on Wednesday for his productive season debut -- the Doak Walker Award National Running Back of the Week accolade.

Doak Walker National Running Back of the Week @jonahcoleman8 @DoakWalkerAward pic.twitter.com/WrOQz1J9xt
— Washington Football (@UW_Football) September 3, 2025

Coleman's first rushing effort ranked him tied for sixth among the nation's top ground gainers through two weeks of college football.

Tops is UNLV's Jai'Den Thomas, who has 212 yards in two games combined against Idaho State and Sam Houston State.

Next up is Fresno State's Bryson Donelson, who rushed for 201 in two outings against Kansas and Georgia Southern.

Troy's Tae Meadows picked up 186 against Nicholls State in his opener.

backup Navy quarterback Braxton Woodson ran for 180 yards against VMI in a replacement appearance.

Old Dominion QB Colton Joseph finished with 179 against North Carolina Central.

Coleman is tied with USTA's Robert Henry Jr., who piled up 177 yards on 16 carries in a 42-24 loss to Texas A&M.

One might say that Coleman and Henry. had the two most impressive outings considering the higher-level competition they faced -- Mountain West and SEC -- with Coleman winning his game and Henry losing his by more than two scores.

Rushing yard leaders right now in college football: pic.twitter.com/rY08sKEq7x
— College Football Alerts  (@CFBAlerts_) September 3, 2025

It's hard to say whether Coleman takes another big jump in rushing yards this coming weekend.

The Huskies face UC Davis, an FSC team from the Big Sky with a great chance for a mismatch. Should that happen, Coleman might retire from the game early in favor of getting plenty of snaps for sophomore understudy Adam Mohammed.

Yet Washington State and Ohio State will come turn up on the schedule soon enough, both good barometers for Coleman and his national standing.

This article first appeared on Washington Huskies on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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