Walker getting back up to speed
Senior at full strength after recovering from torn ACL, shedding knee brace
Tre Walker caught the pitch, made a sharp cut upfield then turned on the jets.
Walker showed impressive acceleration heretofore not seen this season in blowing past several Tulsa defenders like they were standing still. Navy’s starting slotback found a seam and burst through it like he had been shot out of a cannon on a 35-yard run that set up a field goal.
Earlier in the game, Walker took a pitch and did not find a defender between himself and the end zone. The 5-foot-9, 190-pound senior displayed tremendous speed on that play as well en route to scoring off a 33-yard scamper.
“I thought Tre Walker was back to the old Tre Walker,” Navy coach Ken Niumatalolo said during the postgame press conference. “Tre took off the knee brace a couple weeks ago and is starting to come back into his own.” Walker acknowledged he’s just now regaining his top speed after undergoing reconstructive knee surgery last October. The Texas native suffered a torn ACL and accompanying meniscus damage while returning a kickoff against Cincinnati on Sept. 23.
Dr. John Wilckens, a consulting orthopedic surgeon with Navy football, said the normal recovery period for an ACL injury these days is between six to nine months. However, most football players are not completely healed until about a year after having the surgery.
Walker was diligent in doing rehabilitation with Jim Berry, Navy’s associate athletic director for sports medicine. After sitting out spring practice and being limited during summer conditioning, Walker was back on the field when August training camp began.
“I definitely feel like it was more mentally straining than physical. Once you start doing the rehab and everything it starts coming back,” Walker said. “Just getting your confidence back was the biggest test for me personally. I appreciate all my teammates sticking with me and helping me through it.”
Joe DuPaix began his second stint as Navy slotbacks coach in early April and learned that his top returning performer Saturday, noon TV: ESPNU Radio: 1090 AM Line: Tulane by 7 Navy’s Tre Walker picks up big yards on an option play in the third quarter against Lehigh. Walker suffered a torn ACL last season. was coming off knee surgery.
“I guess the story I heard on Tre was that he was an amazing athlete with tremendous speed,” DuPaix said. “I went back and watched some film and saw the kid could fly. I was told that Tre was not going to participate in spring ball, but hopefully would be back by the fall.”
DuPaix kept tabs on Walker’s progress and was told he was doing strength work with the athletic training staff during the spring and summer months, eventually graduating to jogging then running then cutting.
“Lo and behold, come August, Tre was ready to go,” DuPaix said. “I worked with the strength staff and training staff to manage the knee and bring Tre up to speed as quickly as we could.”
Truth be told, Walker did not participate in any live drills during preseason practice in order to reduce the wear and tear on the knee. That basic strategic plan continued into the regular season with Walker’s practice repetitions being carefully monitored.
“Tre understood the plan, but was frustrated with own knee because it was holding him back from a physical stand- point,” DuPaix admitted. “It was a process to give him enough repetitions to get prepared for game day, but not so much that the knee could not handle it.”
DuPaix said there were several weeks this season when Walker did not do much in practice on Monday or Tuesday, cramming all the live practice repetitions with the offense into Wednesday and Thursday.
“I was constantly asking Tre how the knee was feeling and where was he physically,” DuPaix said. “There were times when you could tell the knee was getting weak and tired.”
Walker continued to do rehabilitation work with Berry and spoke regularly with Dr. Wilckens about how the affected knee was progressing. A few weeks ago, it was determined that Walker no longer needed the knee brace he had been wearing all season.
“As the season has gone along I’ve felt more and more comfortable with it. I’ve taken off the knee brace and now I’m just ready to go and feeling really good,” Walker said. “I’m definitely getting confidence back in myself. Early on in the year I was kind of hesitant as far as stepping into the ground.”
Walker has looked like a completely different player the past two games. The Texarkana resident rushed for a careerhigh 82 yards against Central Florida. That sprinter’s speed that earned track and field scholarships from several schools was evident when Walker broke loose for a career-high 46-yard gain, out-racing several chasing defenders while blazing down the right sideline.
“Over the past two weeks it has been really noticeable that Tre is running with more confidence and it is awesome to see,” DuPaix said. “I’m really happy to see Tre back at the top of his game because I know how hard he’s worked and have watched him go through so much over the past nine months.”
Walker, who ran the anchor leg of state championship relay teams in the 400- and 800-meter relays as a senior at Texas High, really turned on the afterburners in exploding up alley against Tulsa on Saturday.
“There was a definitive change of speed on that play. Tre went from zero to 60 in a hurry on that run,” DuPaix agreed. “It is very obvious that Tre feels really good and is running with a whole lot of confidence.”