Jamie McMurray was one of the preseason favorites for 2001 Busch Series Rookie of the Year, based on the way he lit up the Craftsman Truck Series in 2000 in a limited schedule of events. McMurray made a pair of undistinguished starts at the end of 2000, but he will step into the No. 27 Chevrolet fielded by Brewco Motorsports the last two seasons for Casey Atwood, who has graduated to the Winston Cup Series.

McMurray posted his best start and best finish, 19th and 34th, respectively, at Phoenix. However, in the Craftsman Truck Series he turned heads by winning the pole position in his first race for TKO Motorsports, at Michigan International Speedway. He made 16 starts in the truck series and finished 22nd in the standings with a single top-five and four top-10 finishes, plus a second pole.

McMurray split time in 1999 between the RE/MAX Challenge Series and NCTS competition. He was the 1997 Lebanon I-44 Speedway track champion in his home state of Missouri. McMurray won U.S. kart titles in four of the five years between 1986 and 1992.