First Down Kentucky: Deone Walker is a Top 10 Player in College Football

Over the last decade, Mark Stoops has brought star power to Lexington. Benny Snell became the school’s all-time leading rusher. Josh Allen was the best defensive player in college football. Will Levis became a household name at Kentucky. Lynn Bowden made the impossible a reality. Heck, the Cats even deployed the best punter in college football.

Each of those players brought plenty of fanfare to the Kentucky football program from casual college football fans. Levis is the only player to enter a season with as much hype as Deone Walker.

The defensive lineman from Detroit first caught the eyes of the NFL audience in one of his first-ever college football games. As a true freshman in The Swamp, he blew up a Florida running back behind the line of scrimmage, causing one NFL scout in the stands to remark, “How did Kentucky get that guy?” He’s only gotten better since then.

Entering what’s expected to be his third and final season at Kentucky, NFL front offices are salivating at the opportunity to add him to their franchise. The college football world is taking notice too. Each year On3’s Clark Brooks ranks the Top 100 players in college football. Usually, you will find a Kentucky Wildcat or two sprinkled in near the bottom of the list. Not Walker. He’s No. 7 overall in the rankings.

“Deone Walker is an absolute freak at 6’6, 350 who cannot be moved off his spot and adds serious pass rush juice for his defense. No returning Core 4 interior lineman topped his 78 impact plays last year. And aesthetically, seeing a man of his size rock No. 0 just warms my heart,” writes Brooks.

They don’t make players with his size, athleticism, and most importantly, motor. He’s working this offseason to condition himself to play as many snaps as possible. Enjoy every one of them while you can, Big Blue Nation.

College Football Realignment Targets the ACC

The ACC may share a similar fate to the Pac-12. Florida State and Clemson are in active litigation against the league to get out as quickly as possible. It’s made for tenuous meetings this spring in Florida between administrators and North Carolina is making it even more awkward. A board of trustees member publicly called for the Tar Heels to leave the ACC.

“I am advocating for that,” Dave Boliek told WRAL in North Carolina. “That’s what we need to do. We need to do everything we can to get there. Or the alternative is the ACC is going to have to reconstruct itself. I think all options are on the table.”

That reconstruction is a real possibility and it could leave Louisville behind in conference realignment, again. Ross Dellenger reports administrators from seven schools — FSU, Clemson, UNC, Miami, NC State, Virginia, and Virginia Tech — met multiple times last spring to discuss a new-look league that would reform to take a bigger slice of the TV revenue pie. The ACC is a mess and it’s only going to get messier.

100 Days Till College Football Returns

We’re counting down the days until the college football season kicks off in Dublin. It will be here before you know it.

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