Deone Walker continues to trend as First-Round NFL Draft pick

Enjoy Deone Walker this season, Big Blue Nation. Kentucky’s massive defensive tackle continues to trend as a first-round pick in next April’s NFL Draft. The Athletic’s Nick Baumgardner and Scott Dochterman have Walker going No. 19 to the Los Angeles Chargers (now coached by Jim Harbaugh) in their new mock draft, with Baumgardner breaking out some really fun words to describe the 6’6″ 350 lbs. junior.

“The first step in the Harbaugh-ization of the Chargers was the Joe Alt pick, which could give this roster one of the NFL’s best tackle duos in short order. The next step? Fortifying the middle of Jesse Minter’s defense with a powerful gap-eater who’s athletic enough to move around. Walker is a behemoth (6-6, 350) who moves like a dancer and has loads of untapped potential.”

This is just the latest first-round projection for Walker, who has been named a Preseason All-American by every national outlet. Last week, Dane Brugler listed him No. 17 on his first 2025 Big Board along with fellow Kentucky defensive star Maxwell Hairston (No. 32). ESPN’s Field Yates has him No. 24 on his Big Board that dropped this morning.

“Walker is a really fun player to study. He is huge but still a nimble mover, consistently wreaking havoc with his quickness. He had a dominant 2023 season with 7.5 sacks, 39 pressures, and 11.5 tackles for loss. His sheer size and agility combination makes him a tantalizing pro, and he’s also one of the most respected people in the Kentucky program.”

Walker will be a nightmare for teams all season. Southern Miss head coach Will Hall went with some different words, calling Walker a “tremendous opponent” and “great test” for his offensive line while previewing Saturday’s game vs. the Cats.

“He’s obviously a great player. We’ve got a tremendous amount of respect for him. Fundamentals, technique, and effort. You’ve got to rely on fundamentals and technique and you have to play with great effort. That’s the only way to ever win any type of great competitive battle. We feel like we compete every day here and we’re going to compete on Saturday when we go to Lexington. He is a great football player and will be a tremendous opponent for us.”

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Kentucky won’t only miss Walker’s size and skill when he heads to the league. On Monday’s call-in show, Stoops raved about the junior’s attitude and work ethic.

“He’s a guy that everybody looks up to. He goes about his business the right way,. He’s been here three years and I can’t remember him missing a practice. The only reps he misses are when I take him out. He gets mad if I take him out.

“Sometimes we’re trying to operate, like in the second scrimmage of the year — he’s played a lot of football — we’re trying to work a two-minute drill or something, and he’s so darn disruptive, I literally have to take him out so we can operate the drill. He’ll get mad at me for that because he wants to get better and get his reps. I understand that. You gotta love that about him.”

Just over three days until we get to see No. 0 in action again. We’ll get to hear from him tomorrow when he makes an appearance on KSR at 11 a.m. ET.

Catch Kentucky Football’s Deone Walker on KSR tomorrow! 🔥

Don’t miss it! pic.twitter.com/eFIBQmGSW7

— Mario A Maitland (@MarioMaitland_3) August 28, 2024