Illinois Football: 2020 WDE Johnny Walker receives offer from Illini
The Illinois football team targeted the Sunshine State with one of their most recent scholarship offers.
Building up the defensive line is important for the Illini. They have a solid depth chart right now but, in the future, there will need to be more additions to continue keeping this unit strong. That is why I think the offer to Johnny Walker was a good one. He announced Thursday, on Twitter, that he had received this offer from the Orange and Blue.
Walker is a 6-foot-3, 204-pound weak-side defensive end from Chamberlain High School in Tampa, Florida. He is rated as a three-star recruit who is the No. 612 player in the class of 2020 and the No. 26 weak-side defensive end in the nation. He is also the No. 81 player in the state of Florida as well.
There are some big programs after Walker, though. Illinois might be the most recent, but he also has offers from teams like Miami (FL), Washington State and Kansas State. Considering Walker is from Florida, this could be the Hurricanes recruit to lose. But, Illinois does have some solid connections to the state, so I wouldn’t count the Illini out just yet.
When I watch what Walker can do on the football field, he reminds me a lot of Bobby Roundtree at the high school level. Walker is a little smaller than what Roundtree was, but they both had raw talent and a lot of speed.
The damage Walker could do at the next level is exciting. This kid could end up being a hybrid defensive end that can drop back in pass coverage or cover a running back coming out of the backfield. If Illinois wanted, they could probably move him to outside linebacker as well.
Next. 2020 target Zeriah Beason has Illini in the mix. dark
A player like Walker gives team’s options on where to put him on the field. He has a lot of untapped potential. He needs a good coaching staff at the next level that can develop him as a player. That coaching staff is in Champaign.