North Carolina beats Maryland and Tennessee, keeps Rico Walker home

Rico Walker trimmed his list to five on July 1. It came down to Auburn, Florida, Maryland, North Carolina, and Tennessee for the four-star EDGE out of Hickory (N.C.).

The No. 186 prospect in the On3 Consensus took official visits to Maryland and North Carolina in June. The four-star visited Knoxville multiple times over the last year as well.

The finalists in this race were the Terrapins, Tar Heels, and Vols. Walker chose to stay home.

“I had a good feeling about North Carolina four or five months ago,” Walker told On3. “They have been recruiting me for a good minute, I have had a good relationship with them, and it is home.”

Walker likes the balance in Chapel Hill. From athletics to education to the day-to-day life on campus.

“It is all about that feeling I had on campus. It felt like home. North Carolina is a great school with a lot to offer. It was a hard decision, but that feeling never went away.”

Mack Brown and his staff did a great job recruiting the No. 6 prospect in its home state. The staff made him a priority, they got to know him, and that paid off in the end.

“The North Carolina coaches were very personable with me,” Walker said. “They love my game, what I could potentially be, and they always kept it real.

“Coach Brown is a good dude. He always checked up on me and he wants to make me better beyond football. The relationships were big for me.”

North Carolina recruited Walker to play outside linebacker in their scheme.