Former walk-on and now team captain, junior linebacker Von Walker has carved out a special and prominent role at Penn State while taking path less traveled.
A local kid from Mill Hall, Pennsylvania, Walker says his Penn State blood started early, coming to countless games and donning Penn State jerseys to grade school.
While getting recruited by then-head coach Bill O’Brien, Walkers says coming to Penn State as a walk-on opposed to being a starter at a D2 school was an easy decision.
“Its been a dream ever since i was a little kid, growing up coming to the games, I looked at my parents and the decision was made on the spot,” Walker said. “I couldn’t say no to the opportunity and it turned out to be a really good one for me.”
“I didn’t think it was possible when I was younger,” he said, ”but things started happening and now I’m here and it’s kind of surreal.”
Since his arrival in Happy Valley, he’s been an all-purpose for the Nittany Lions taking snaps on offense, defense and special teams. He’s played running back, safety and now linebacker throughout his collegiate career, similarly juggling various positions in high school.
Walker’s mindset as he balances shifting from each position: “If the team needs me in this position then I need to learn this position. If it needs to be done then I need to be the guy to do it.”
Despite the constant shifts, Walker believes he’s found a home at Linebacker U.
“I’ve been very lucky to get a lot of opportunities and chances to play all those different positions but I’m where I’m suppose to be right now,” Walker added.
After proving his worth through his first two seasons, appearing in 23 games and earning Academic All-Big Ten honors last season. Walker came into the 2015 season a scholarship player and team captain.
Both honors meant “equally as much” to him. “The scholarship was more of a personal thing for me and the [captaincy] showed me I had the backup of my team,” he added.
Without Nyeem Wartman-White, Walker’s voice will be even more important for Linebacker U, though, he says the group collectively helps each other day in and day out.
“I might be a captain on the team but they teach me everyday just as much as I do them,” Walker said of his linebacker corps.
Penn State head coach James Franklin praised Walker in his weekly conferences yesterday, acknowledging the respect Walker garners from both staff and teammates.
“Von Walker has earned everyone’s respect,” Franklin said. “When he talks in a meeting or on the field, the coaches, players and staff listen.”
After taking a leap of faith on Penn State, Walker has now positioned himself to reap the benefit from his commitment to the football program.
“I decided when I came here I was going to work hard,” Walker said. “I had some goals set when I came here and now everything falling into place for me and I couldn’t ask for a better outcome.”
