Tag: Amorion Walker

Amorion Walker transfers back to Michigan football

Welcome home to the prodigal son! #GoBlue

Rumspringa is apparently over for Amorion Walker.

The Michigan football wide receiver-turned-cornerback was supposed to be the next big thing in Ann Arbor, but a mix between the learning curve and injuries precluded Walker from being an impact player in 2023. He surprised by transferring to Ole Miss following the national championship run, but apparently the grass isn’t always greener. Following spring ball in Oxford, the junior-to-be was set to be on the move again.

Walker re-entered the transfer portal last week and surprisingly, his original choice of school was his likely destination. That held true as Walker announced he’s coming back to the Wolverines.

Walker was only gone for one semester and will rejoin the team almost like he never left — save for the vast coaching changes. It’s unclear if he’ll remain at cornerback or if he’ll return to the offensive side of the ball, where he was originally recruited. Considering Michigan football has depth issues at both positions, either makes sense. He also could play both ways as was the original intention behind his position switch last spring.

Former Michigan football DB re-enters transfer portal

Well, this is interesting.

As Jason Lee famously mused in the movie Mallrats, ‘That kid is back on the escalator again!’ Such appears to be the case for a former Michigan football defensive back.

After garnering tons of hype last spring, prior to the spring game, Amorion Walker was described as ‘a unicorn’ in his physical ability to play cornerback. Walker had switched over from being a wide receiver, and the Michigan coaching staff at the time salivated over his potential. However, after Walker got burned repeatedly by walk-on wide receiver Peyton O’Leary in the 2023 spring game, the Wolverines sought another corner in the portal to pair with Will Johnson.

Walker languished on the depth chart before ultimately choosing to transfer to Ole Miss. That pairing lasted a semester as Walker is reportedly re-entering the transfer portal.

The transfer portal will remain open this spring until May 1, so there will certainly be more movement across college football. In addition to those Michigan lost earlier in the portal, the Wolverines lost three prominent young players, including one projected starter in cornerback DJ Waller — the player who was anticipated to soften the blow of Walker’s departure.

Oddly enough, the favorite to land Walker is none other than — Michigan football, according to On3’s Pete Nakos.

Former Notre Dame commitment to transfer from Michigan

Should Notre Dame circle back here?

Less than a week after being a part of Michigan‘s first national championship team since 1997, a former Notre Dame commitment is entering the transfer portal.

[autotag]Amorion Walker[/autotag] was a Notre Dame commitment in the 2022 recruiting class where he was set to play wide receiver.  He flipped his commitment to Michigan late in the process and ultimately switched to cornerback.

Walker battled an undisclosed injury this year and didn’t see the field much for the Wolverines, playing in just five games.

Walker starred at Ponchatoula High School in Louisiana before heading to the Midwest for college.

Will Notre Dame circle back here?  With the switch to defensive back I wouldn’t assume so but certainly worth at least keeping an eye on.

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Michigan football CB Amorion Walker chooses new school via transfer portal

Best of luck to him. #GoBlue

It was a big win for Michigan football when it managed to snag an already-committed player out of the state of Louisiana in the 2022 recruiting cycle.

A three-star prospect, Amorion Walker was a wide receiver pledged to Notre Dame, but on early signing day in December 2021, Walker flipped to the Wolverines, looking to play the position under fellow Louisiana native, Ron Bellamy.

Walker saw sparing time as a wideout in his freshman season, but he was the talk of spring ball in 2023 when he made the switch to cornerback. Called ‘a unicorn’ by Jim Harbaugh, no other individual player drew as many headlines in the offseason as Walker.

But injuries precluded him from seeing the field early, along with Josh Wallace transferring from UMass. After the national championship game win, Walker entered the transfer portal, and on Wednesday, his new school was revealed.

Moving closer to home, Walker committed to Lane Kiffin and the Ole Miss Rebels.

With Walker to Ole Miss and Darrius Clemons to Oregon State, Michigan has but one receiver left from the 2022 class in Tyler Morris. As far as cornerbacks are concerned, the Wolverines will likely look to other players in Walker’s class such as Kody Jones and Myles Pollard, or Jyaire Hill and DJ Waller from the 2023 class.

Surprising Michigan football player enters transfer portal

So much for all the hype.

There was no bigger hype in spring ball in Ann Arbor than that for one specific Michigan football player.

All of the talk all spring was about Wolverines wide receiver Amorion Walker, who was moving from offense to defense and would play cornerback. Lofty expectations were heaped upon him. Jim Harbaugh called Walker a unicorn, raving about his potential as a long, rangy, speedy corner. His coaches also sung his praises.

But Walker never became that next, great starter. He did not follow in nickel back Mike Sainristil’s footsteps.

And apparently Walker is looking for another opportunity; he has entered the transfer portal.

Walker is a loss on both sides of the ball. Michigan could use a tall, speedy receiver or a corner opposite Will Johnson. A Louisiana native’s departure means two of the three receivers Michigan brought in via the 2022 class are leaving. Darrius Clemons has also decided to enter the portal.

Steve Clinkscale assess DB injuries, happy with Amorion Walker’s attentiveness

Really encouraging stuff here, all around. #GoBlue

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — After a full offseason when there have been touted defensive backs, new and old, fans got something of an unexpected look on Saturday when Michigan football trotted out some other faces in Week 1 than what was maybe anticipated back in the spring.

The idea was that we’d see the two usual starting safeties, Rod Moore and Makari Paige, nickel Mike Sainristil, and corners Will Johnson and Amorion Walker. But the Wolverines only had two of the above, Paige and Sainristil, play at all, and even Paige was limited. Instead, we saw Keon Sabb and Zeke Berry mostly at safety, transfer cornerback Josh Wallace and former walk-on Keshaun Harris working the other corner spot.

There was a lot of excitement about Walker, particularly, in the spring, especially when Jim Harbaugh and his fellow coaches referred to him as ‘a unicorn’ after switching him from wide receiver to defensive back. But Walker has been seen walking on crutches since relatively early in fall camp and hasn’t been available to practice since sustaining his injury.

However, his position coach, Steve Clinkscale, has been impressed with his attitude and demeanor as he’s working back to health, noting that his approach should help him be even better once he is able to get back onto the field.

“Well, Amorion is a special talent — we all know that,” Clinkscale said. “But what I see for him now — so spring doesn’t matter, this summer doesn’t matter. What I see for him now is he’s locked in. He’s in here. He’s not able to practice, but he’s watching film, he’s taking notes — you should see his notes. I take his notes and show them to everybody. He’s taking notes like he’s — everything. If I burp, he writes down burp.

“He’s taking notes, he’s listening to everything. He’s being a sponge, and that’s what you want from your players. If they’re not able to do it physically, do it mentally, right? And that way, now when a younger guy wants to talk to him, he can give them the right answer.

“So I’ve been proud of him about how he’s handled this. It’s not been an emotional deal where you can disappear, you don’t see him while he’s injured. He’s here every day all the time. We text and communicate every day. So I think that when he does come back, it’ll help him just kind of just catapult to where he was and maybe even surpass it. So looking forward to big things from all those guys. I think they’ve done a great job.”

What about the other defensive backs, safety Rod Moore and cornerback Will Johnson? Both dressed on Saturday, but neither played.

Jim Harbaugh said both were close and could potentially play this upcoming week against UNLV, but wasn’t definitive in his assessment. However, Clinkscale said both practiced on Monday and could be ready to go against the Rebels at 3:30 p.m. EDT.

“Yeah, they’re getting closer and closer every day,” Clinkscale said. “I kind of stay out of the training room with them, so when they’re out there on the field, I coach them. Yesterday, they were both at practice, so that was awesome. They’re getting closer and closer every day, they’re feeling —

“The big thing with those guys and having the issues that they have is not to rush them back, to make sure they’re comfortable, especially when you’re a DB and you’re out on the island, you rush the guy back too fast, it can really set him back a little bit. So I think coach has done a great job and our training staff has done a great job with bringing those guys back the way they need to be right on time. Not too fast, not too slow. So I’m excited about seeing them out there this year.

“I think having Makari for a few plays last week made a big difference, help some of those young guys kind of get their feet wet with an older guy, with a veteran out there on the field with a physical player on the field. And he kind of set the tone. And then I let the rest of the guys play the rest of the game. So getting those guys closer and closer will help us get them a few plays here and there until they’re 100% ready.”

Jim Harbaugh updates Michigan football fall camp injuries in 2023

Well this is (mostly) good news! #GoBlue

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Usually when Jim Harbaugh meets with the media halfway through fall camp, there are a number of players who are battling injuries — whether it be day-by-day or significantly longer.

However, in 2023, the team appears to be relatively healthy, albeit with a few exceptions.

On Friday, sophomore cornerback Amorion Walker was seen entering the building on crutches, and while Harbaugh did confirm his injury, he said it’s not a long-term concern.

“A little bit, he’s working through something right now,” Harbaugh said. “But I expect to have him back in four to five days.”

There is one player who could potentially be out for the year, Harbaugh also confirmed, but the team isn’t sure as of yet. Sophomore wide receiver Logan Forbes, from Clarkston (Mich.), is a walk-on, and while Harbaugh says that he’s excelled thus far during the offseason, he had an injury that could preclude his availability either on offense or special teams, pending an MRI.

“Yeah, we will have to see what with Logan Forbes, who was having such a great camp, tremendous offseason,” Harbaugh said. “Waiting on an MRI this morning. But hoping for the best, we’ll plan for the worst but he’s been — just it’s one of those gut-wrenching things. So we’ll find out. Knowing him, he’ll do what all the other guys do. They just come back bigger, stronger, faster.”

Michigan still does have a week and a half left in fall camp before it begins game week preparations in earnest with East Carolina coming to Ann Arbor on Sept. 2. Optimally, the team will be at, or close, to full-strength for the season opener and beyond.

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Four Michigan football players make annual ‘freaks list’

The Wolverines have a lot of talent, no doubt! #GoBlue

The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman has published his annual ‘freaks list’ ($) and while Michigan football doesn’t have a player on top as it did last year in Mazi Smith, one of his closest teammates isn’t too far behind as a new inclusion.

In fact, Michigan football has more players on the list this year than in the past, with four drawing Feldman’s eye.

The highest rated is a player who is essentially called a freak internally in Ann Arbor — the man who they call ‘the mutant.’

6. Kris Jenkins, Michigan, defensive tackle

The Wolverines defensive line under Jim Harbaugh and strength coach Ben Herbert has been a gold mine for the Freaks List, and Jenkins is next in line. The former three-star recruit, the son of former NFL star Kris Jenkins, arrived in Ann Arbor at 257 pounds, and he played last season in the mid-280s. He made 54 tackles, 3.5 TFLs and had 20 QB pressures. According to PFF, he led all defensive linemen in the country in run stops. But people inside the Michigan program think he’s now ready to take a huge step forward as an impact guy. He’s up to 307 pounds and is more powerful and explosive than ever. He did 32 reps of 225 on the bench and did 760 pounds on the combo twist. Only last year’s top Freak, Mazi Smith, some 30 pounds heavier, did more slinging around 800 pounds.

Jenkins recently did a Turkish get-up with a 170-pound dumbbell — the heaviest Herbert has ever witnessed. Jenkins does pull-ups with a 100-pound weight strapped to his waist. He also moves incredibly well for being a 300-plus pounder, running a 7.16 3-cone, a 4.33 shuttle, broad-jumping 9-8 and vertical-jumping 34 inches.

Jenkins’ shuttle and 3-cone times are both almost two-tenths of a second faster than the quickest interior defensive lineman did at this year’s NFL combine. His broad jump would be tied for the best. His vertical jump would be second-best, and only Smith topped his number on the bench press.

“He’s the mutant of all mutants,” Harbaugh tells The Athletic. “He just keeps going and going. He’s No. 1 in our KPIs (Key Performance Indicators). He’s over 300. He’s the poster child for enthusiasm unknown to mankind. Watch him become a top-10 pick.”

‘The Mutant’ is one freak, but there’s another who gets similar hype internally — ‘The Unicorn.’

12. Amorion Walker, Michigan, cornerback

A former three-star recruit from Louisiana, Walker played five games at wideout and one at defensive back as a true freshman in 2022, but he’s made an eye-catching transformation since arriving at Michigan at 156 pounds. Now, he’s 6-3 1/4, 180 pounds and has crazy athleticism. This offseason he blazed through the 3-cone drill in a stunning 6.10 seconds.

“It’s the fastest time I have ever seen and likely the fastest I will ever see,” strength coach Ben Herbert says. 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 12 years ago by Oregon’s Jeff Maehl.

Walker’s 3.89 shuttle would’ve been tops at the combine as well. Smith-Njigba ran a 3.93 with Brandin Cooks’ 3.81 in 2014 the record. And there’s more: Walker vertical-jumped 42 1/2 inches. He did 11-4 in the broad jump and he clocked a 4.34 40, and he did it out of a two-point stance.

Walker is battling for the second starting cornerback spot, and while transfer Josh Wallace is the early, odds-on favorite, the Wolverines would love nothing more than for Walker to realize his potential after moving him to defense from wide receiver this offseason.

The next player is one we’ve discussed as someone who doesn’t look at all like he plays the position he does because he’s so built.

50. Alex Orji, Michigan, quarterback

There’s a bunch of other Wolverines we could’ve included in here in this spot: Blake Corum, who does 30 reps of 225 on the bench and also clocked a 6.39 3-cone and a 3.89 shuttle; Zak Zinter, who at 6-6, 325, vertical-jumped 33 inches and had a 4.44 shuttle; or Mike Sainristil, who had a 40-inch vertical and bounded up the reactive plyo stairs in 2.26 seconds, but Orji was who several teammates pointed to as their top Freak.

The 6-3, 237-pound sophomore quarterback ranks No. 1 on the team in its cumulative KPI score, which is made up of 48 Key Performance Indicators they use to track frame analysis: flexibility/mobility; strength/power; and agility/speed. Orji vertical-jumped 41 inches and did 2.34 in the reactive plyo stairs; broad-jumped 10-6; and did 3.97 in the shuttle and 6.65 in the 3-cone. On the field, the Texas native ran for two touchdowns and completed one pass in mop-up duty in 2022.

Built more like a linebacker than a quarterback, expect the Wolverines to find a role for Orji one way or another.

The final inclusion for the maize and blue is a starter who is looking for big things in 2023.

73. Roman Wilson, Michigan, wide receiver

A former “Fastest Man” at The Opening as a high school recruit, having clocked a 4.37 40, the 6-0, 193-pound senior wows the coaches with his ability to accelerate, decelerate and control his body. This offseason, Wilson clocked a 4.33 40 out of a two-point stance; ran a sizzling 6.20 3-cone drill that was only upstaged by teammate Amorion Walker. But then again, Wilson topped everyone with a 3.77 shuttle time, and also had a terrific 10.76 60-yard shuttle and flew up the Wolverines’ reactive plyo stairs in 2.22 seconds, also best in the program. On the field, Wilson caught 25 passes for 376 yards and four touchdowns and added two more rushing touchdowns.

Michigan football has always had a few players on the list, including last years No. 1 in Mazi Smith. As he has the past several years, former Wolverine defensive end Julius Welschof, who transferred to Charlotte this offseason, made the list yet again.

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Who’s standing out in Michigan football CB competition opposite Will Johnson?

It’s still a question mark, but there are options. #GoBlue

Michigan football is entering 2023 with essentially just one question mark: who is playing cornerback on the opposite side of the field from Will Johnson?

All spring, the hype was surrounding Amorion Walker, the former three-star wide receiver from Louisiana who flipped from Notre Dame on early signing day in 2021. Walker converted to cornerback in the winter months, though he had spent some time on that side of the ball in his freshman year. Jim Harbaugh called him ‘a unicorn,’ noting that he has a skill set you can’t teach that could make him a dominant force at the position. However, he was shaky, at best, in the spring game on April 1, leading to more questions about how everything would play out for him.

Speaking to Jon Jansen on the ‘In the Trenches’ podcast, defensive pass game coordinator Steve Clinkscale, he’s pleased with where Walker is thus far, noting that what happened this spring is part of the journey.

“I feel like Amorion is right where he needs to be,” Clinkscale said. “He had a pretty solid beginning of the spring, had a little bit of roller coaster up and down. And now he’s fighting his way back up. And that’s what you need to do as a corner, it shouldn’t be all roses. I played corner. All the guys who play corner know there’s been times where you’ve, you’ve lost the game for the team. You’ve been beat in a situation where you’d never forget about it. I’m 45 years old, I still know the times I’ve gotten beat back in the 90s. So it’s never gonna go away.

“But he’s doing a lot better job of building off of it and not letting it stop him from or stunt his growth. And so I’ve been very proud of him this summer. And his ability to focus in.”

So who will Michigan trust if Walker isn’t ready come the season opener? The good news is there are options, including a late-offseason transfer that came in from UMass.

“Josh Wallace is the guy that we brought in as well, who’s going to do a really good job for us,” Clinkscale said. “He’s been able to adapt right away. He’s we’re very willing to learn what’s going on so I’m excited by him.

“And, of course, Keshaun Harris and Ja’Den McBurrows and a slew of guys — Myles Pollard, as well as some of those young guys that were just brought in — they all have opportunity to show us what they can do and it’s wide open. So we really want to be able to solidify that spot opposite of Will, of course. But if we have any doubt, Mikey (Sainristil), like I said, he can do it all.”

The additional good news is that the Wolverines don’t exactly have a daunting schedule, particularly to start. Arguably the three toughest games in pass defense will come in the final three games of the season. So the maize and blue have some time to work the options to get the best combination of defensive backs in play.

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Jim Harbaugh updates Amorion Walker’s progress at cornerback

Can’t wait to see what he does this year! #GoBlue

DETROIT — At this time last year, Jim Harbaugh made a big position switch, taking wide receiver Mike Sainristil and converting him to nickel on the defensive side of the ball. The move paid off handsomely, and Harbaugh is hoping his similar move this offseason produces similar results.

The talk of spring ball was Michigan moving second-year wideout Amorion Walker to cornerback. The Wolverines need someone to play opposite Will Johnson. After being billed a unicorn by his headman, his play was inconsistent when fans and media saw him in action in the annual spring game. However, Harbaugh is confident that Amorion is on the right track.

“Great question. I thought he did really good, really well,” Harbaugh said. “Every day was a learning experience for him and really kind of epitomized better today than yesterday, better tomorrow than today. Coach Clink is doing a great job with him. So really feel good. Really feel good about how he’s coming along.”

Harbaugh said Walker appears to be right on track to secure the starting job opposite Johnson, but he has some growing to do when it comes to playing the position.

The good news is, Michigan has time to work it out, as does Walker. As Harbaugh said, there’s no way to predict the future, but he likes Walker’s progress thus far.

“I don’t know,” Harbaugh said. “You plant seeds and see which ones develop. I think we’re gonna have quite a few guys with the best license and ability to do that. We’ll see. That’s always a good thing. By your talent and your effort you will be known.

“A lot can happen over the summer. There’s a lot that can happen in spring practice to the start of training camp. Where it left in spring ball, I was pretty darn pleased. This could be some of the best corners we’ve had, two of the best corners we’ve ever had. We’ll see. See how it goes the rest of the summer and in training camp.”

Michigan recently hosted UMass transfer and former team captain of the Minutemen, Josh Wallace, who could be another viable option — though he’d be a late arrival and could have growing pains of his own learning the playbook. However, Michigan’s nonconference schedule featuring three Group of Five teams gives the Wolverines some leeway to break in a new corner, regardless if it’s Walker, the current field or an incoming transfer.

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