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Could Michigan football get portal help from a familiar face?

Chris Balasby:Chris Balas04/26/24

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Junior Amorion Walker could be coming back to Michigan. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)

Michigan is looking for a cornerback and a receiver in the portal to help round out the 2024 roster — could the Wolverines kill two birds with one stone? It’s possible, if reports are correct.

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Junior Amorion Walker hit the transfer portal immediately after the season, picked up by Ole Miss. He had moved from receiver to cornerback before the season, at which point head coach Jim Harbaugh said he considered him a “starter” and a “unicorn” given his athletic ability at his size.

“I consider him a starter right now, just off the first few practices, and I think those other players I mentioned will all be right there in the hunt as well,” he said in late February last year “The work ethic is so strong with him. Right now, he’s chasing strength and power.  If we’re right, he could be the type of corner that there are none like him … like a unicorn.”

Instead, he was banged up before the year and had a hard time seeing the field. He missed the first four games of the season before playing at Nebraska Sept. 30.

The 6-3, 180-pounder played in 13 games at Michigan, seven as a wide receiver in 2022 and six in 2023 as a defensive back. He notched three tackles, including a half-tackle for loss, against Indiana Oct. 14.

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The big question — which side of the ball would he play? U-M needs help at both receiver and cornerback. In addition, there’s no evidence so far he’s got the football ability to match his athleticism.

But there’s no question he’s elite at the latter. He ran a 6.1-second three-cone drill last year, which then strength coach Ben Herbert was the fastest he’d ever seen.

“It’s the fastest time I have ever seen and likely the fastest I will ever see,” Herbert said. “That time is almost a full half-second faster than the fastest time recorded at the combine last spring (Jaxon Smith-Njigba’s 6.57). It would also blow away the combine record of 6.42 set.”

On3’s Pete Nakos believes Michigan could be the team to beat.

Watch for more on this development in the hours and days to come.

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