The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Dogs expect breakout year from Walker
ATHENS — Justin Elder thinks he knows the exact moment that Travon Walker became a 5-star recruiting prospect. The Upson-lee football coach had recently moved Walker from a down-line- man position to linebacker and wasn’t sure how it’d go. It went pretty well. “The ball was thrown behind him and he onehands it with his left hand and, boom, he’s hauling butt down the field,” said Elder, speaking of a late fall game in 2018. “It was unbelievable, one of the best plays I’ve seen in 20 years of coach- ing. It was a big play for us and I just remember thinking that night, ‘Dang, this kid is going to play on Sundays.’”
Elder didn’t mention two other plays Walker made that night. Also playing tight end for the Knights, he caught a pair of touchdown passes in a dramatic, come-from-behind victory. The 6-foot-5, 285-pound defensive line- man already was a big-time recruit, but things seemed to ramp up to another level after that, especially once Walker was bestowed that coveted fifth star.
Fast forward to 2021 and Walker is still making big plays. The majority of them, though, are occurring on Georgia’s Woodruff Practice Fields. While Walker certainly has had has share of memorable moments on fall Saturdays — that fourth-quar- ter sack against Auburn in 2019 springs to mind — he hasn’t exactly developed into a household name with the Bulldogs.
Not yet, anyway.
But this season, Georgia is expecting big things from Walker, a rising junior and set to start at defensive end. And not just as a defensive end or 4-technique tackle. The Bulldogs are trying to come up with multiple ways to get Walker involved in the defensive scheme this season.
“Travon, I think he is going to have a big year for us,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said the second week of spring camp. “Not only is he replacing Malik (Her- ring) but, in a lot of ways, he is replacing (outside line- backer) Azeez (Ojulari).”
The interesting aspect of Smart’s comments about Walker is they came in answer to a question about outside linebacker Nolan Smith stepping up in the wake of Ojulari turning pro as an underclassman.
“I think everyone assumes with Azeez being gone that it is now Nolan’s job,” Smart said. “But it is not like that for us. Sixty to 70 percent of the snaps Travon is Azeez. And then Nolan is Azeez. It’s just one is left and one is right. Both of those guys play defensive end a lot.”
That makes perfect sense to Elder, who basically moved Walker around a lot on defense, too. In high school, Elder could pretty much put him anywhere and he’d dominate. He’s still not sure Georgia shouldn’t give Walker a shot at tight end, though the Bulldogs appear well-stocked there.
But Smart’s comments mesh with what Elder has been hearing about Walk- er’s development at UGA.
“It sounds like they’re putting some eggs in the basket with him and that’s good to hear,” Elder said. “I saw the other day they had him at 6-5, 285 and they had him running 18-19 miles per hour on GPS. He can move in space; he’s got ball skills. His wing span’s so big he can reach around a tree. I think he’s going to be able to handle it.”
Georgia’s offensive linemen agree. Starting guard Justin Shaffer referenced that wingspan when asked about Walker after UGA’S seventh spring practice on Tuesday.
go against each other almost every day,” said Shaf- fer, a fifth-year senior and three-year starter for the Bulldogs. “It’s hard because his arms are so long and he’s so explosive off