Class of 2025 Georgia LB Mantrez Walker commits to CU Buffs

Colorado’s 2025 recruiting class picked up a four-star linebacker

This year’s Black and Gold Weekend presents the Colorado Buffaloes with an opportunity to showcase live football at Folsom Field while making some recruiting noise. The Buffs continued their commitment hot streak on Saturday as class of 2025 four-star linebacker Mantrez Walker announced his pledge.

Walker, a 6-foot-1, 225-pound prospect from Buford, Georgia, announced his decision on social media right as CU’s spring football game kicked off.

According to Rivals, Walker received other offers from notable programs such as Florida, LSU, Michigan and Ohio State. Walker will likely factor in as an inside linebacker at the college level, but he showcased the ability to rush the passer in his high school highlight film. He also has excellent awareness when playing the run and attacks downhill after diagnosing the play.

Walker joins tight end Corbin Laisure and defensive back Alex Graham as 2025 recruits who’ve committed to CU.

Contact/Follow us @BuffaloesWire on X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook for ongoing coverage of Colorado news, notes and opinions.

Georgia linebacker Mantrez Walker places Penn State among top five schools

Penn State makes the latest top schools cut for a former Michigan commit.

Penn State already has three linebackers in its 2025 recruiting class, but that doesn’t stop the defacto “LBU” from trying to add talent to its notoriously talented position.

With three-star Georgia linebacker Mantrez Walker announcing his top five schools yesterday morning, Penn State is now a finalist for another top linebacker in the class of 2025. Walker’s other finalists are Colorado, Miami, Ole Miss, and LSU.

Walker was initially committed to Michigan but de-committed in September. 247Sports lists Walker as the no. 43 best linebacker in his class.

When discussing his top five with 247’s recruiting expert Steve Wiltfong, Walker had this to say about Penn State’s program and the lure of being “LBU”:

“Them being LBU and consistently putting linebackers into the league. They’ve recruited me since my sophomore year and although Manny Diaz left I still feel some love from
them. Coach Franklin has great stability in Happy Valley and that’s something that is very important especially in these days of the portal and stuff. I feel like they just need the right pieces to get over that hump and I feel like I could help with that.”

It does seem that Manny Diaz’s departure was a pretty big deal for Walker, but [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] certainly has done a great job stabilizing his defensive coaching staff with the hiring of [autotag]Tom Allen[/autotag].

Walker would be a cherry on top for a 2025 class that already holds commitments from three linebackers, including two four-stars. Penn State has some stiff competition, with four big programs also in the fold, but Walker would add more depth to an already talented class.

Follow Charlie Strella on Twitter, Threads, and Instagram.

LSU makes top 5 for 2025 3-star linebacker

One of the best linebackers in the 2025 recruiting class has trimmed his list of final schools down to five.

One of the best linebackers in the 2025 recruiting class has trimmed his list of final schools down to five. [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] and the LSU Tigers made the cut.

LSU joins Colorado, Miami, Ole Miss and Penn State as the final five teams that [autotag]Mantrez Walker[/autotag] is considering committing to. There are currently no Crystal Ball projections for Walker at this time and there are no clear favorites to land him per On3.

Walker is from Buford, Georgia, where he plays for Buford High School. The Buford Wolves finished the 2023 season 11-2 with a loss to Grayson in the third round of the Class 7A playoffs.

LSU’s 2025 recruiting class currently has the No. 1 quarterback, wide receiver, and running back in the country. The Tigers are also in the mix for the No. 1 safety in the class as well. The 2025 recruiting class is shaping up to be one of the best recruiting classes in LSU history.

Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.

Michigan football loses 2025 LB via decommitment

Bummer, but wish him well.

Michigan football had hoped it had found something special, both in player and pipeline in one of its 2025 commitments.

The Wolverines’ second commitment of the 2025 class was Buford (Ga.) three-star linebacker Mantrez Walker, but Walker had waffled a bit on his pledge, noting during the summer months that his recruitment was still open. Though he still claimed to be committed to the maize and blue, it was an ominous sign of things to come.

On Monday, those signs equaled destiny.

Walker took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to announce that his is renouncing his pledge from the Wolverines, thus decommitting from Michigan football.

With Walker out of the fold, Michigan now has but two commitments in 2025 — Florida cornerback Chris Ewald and Howell (Mich.) defensive lineman Bobby Kanka.

Walker has offers from Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Florida State, LSU, Miami, MSU, Ohio State, Penn State, and Tennessee, among others.

Michigan football 2025 commit reopens recruitment

Not great, Bob.

The Wolverines don’t necessarily have one 2025 commitment on lockdown despite his being a vocal recruiter for Michigan football.

A four-star linebacker from Buford, Georgia, Mantrez Walker pledged to the maize and blue in February and has been constantly in the ears of other recruits considering Michigan football. However, he may not be solid when it comes to heading north.

Walker went on X, formerly known as Twitter, to say that if any other schools wanted to come calling, his recruitment is open and he’s not 100% shut down. Thus, calling him committed isn’t exactly truth in this scenario.

Considering Walker cannot sign with a school until December 2024 at the very earliest, it appears unlikely Michigan will end up with him in the class, barring a strong recruitment effort in the interim.

The Wolverines have another pledge in 2025 who does appear to be solid to the maize and blue: Hollywood (Florida) Chaminade-Madonna Prep four-star cornerback Chris Ewald.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

[affiliatewidget_smgtolocal title=”An offer for Wolverines fans” description=”For the best local Detroit news, sports, entertainment and culture coverage, subscribe to the Detroit Free Press.” url=”https://cm.freep.com/channeloffer?gps-source=CPSMGMIDARTICLE&utm_source=smg&utm_medium=inline&utm_content=wolverineswire&utm_campaign=smgtolocal&offer=W-SF&barBuild=atoms-pid” button_text=”$1 for 3 months”]

Michigan football nabs big time 2025 LB from SEC country

Another HUGE get for #Michigan! #GoBlue

Although 2024 may be on the clock, Michigan football is getting a big, early start on the 2025 recruiting class.

The Wolverines already have a four-star pledge from Florida, cornerback Chris Ewald, in the 2025 fold. While there aren’t many already rated in the class, the maize and blue have been working to add another top-flight prospect in 2025.

Hailing from Buford, Georgia, where former Wolverines running back Christian Turner once played, linebacker Mantrez Walker has offers from Florida, LSU, Michigan State, Florida State, Ohio State, Penn State, South Carolina and Tennessee among others. On Saturday, Walker chose to make an early commitment, pledging to Michigan football.

He made his commitment on Rivals’ YouTube page.

Listed at 5 feet, 11 inches and 215 pounds, Walker also competes in track and field. He received his Michigan offer on Dec. 8.

Walker does not have a rating, but given his offer sheet, it’s likely he’ll come in as a four-star prospect.

[listicle id=68164]

[mm-video type=playlist id=01eqbzardvge799bm2 player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=]

Florida football makes final four for coveted 2025 linebacker

The Gators made the cut for this big-time linebacker out of Georgia.

Florida football continues to churn away at the recruiting grindstone as the focus turns from the 2023 cycle to 2024 and beyond. The latest news from the prep prospect ranks comes from the class of 2025, in which the Gators are among the top four schools in contention for the young student-athlete’s services.

Linebacker [autotag]Mantrez Walker[/autotag] out of Buford (Georgia) recently released his top teams, telling On3’s Chad Simmons, “All have recruited me hard since my sophomore year started.” Those programs are Florida, the Michigan Wolverines, Penn State Nittany Lions and LSU Tigers. He has visited all of them except for LSU so far.

The 5-foot-11-inch, 215-pound defender visited Gainesville last summer, which went quite well in his own words.

“I was at Florida back in the summer and I had a great time. I love the vision coach Napier has for the program. Coach Napier is the coach that can get Florida back to the top.”

Beyond the Gators’ head coach, inside linebackers coach [autotag]Jay Bateman[/autotag] and defensive analyst [autotag]Jamar Chaney[/autotag] have also led the way in the high school sophomore’s recruitment.

Walker has yet to receive any ratings or rankings from 247Sports, On3 or Rivals. On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine currently has the South Carolina Gamecocks out front for his talents with a 22.7% chance of landing him, followed by the Arkansas Razorbacks, Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and Virginia Tech Hokies at 19.8%, 8.9% and 7.4% respectively. Rivals’ FutureCast commitment forecast gives Michigan a 100% chance of landing him.

[mm-video type=video id=01graa1dq79khqaxwazw playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01graa1dq79khqaxwazw/01graa1dq79khqaxwazw-c6f127b21f447c5b32388ac987456672.jpg]

[lawrence-related id=100805,100794,100779,100765,100762]

[listicle id=100739]

[listicle id=100205]

[listicle id=100155]

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

2025 linebacker, LSU target sets commitment date

Mantrez Walker will decide between Michigan, Florida, Penn State and the Tigers.

[autotag]Mantrez Walker[/autotag] is a 5-foot-11, 215-pound linebacker in the class of 2025. He is from Buford, Georgia, where he plays for Buford High School.

[autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] has paved a recruiting trail from Baton Rouge, Louisiana all the way to Buford, signing three-star offensive tackle Paul Mubenga in the 2023 recruiting class. His former teammate Walker is down to four teams: LSU, Michigan, Florida and Penn State. He is set to make a decision on Feb. 11.

He has no Crystal Ball projections so far, and On3 isn’t sure where he will land either. LSU currently has two commitments for the 2025 recruiting class, [autotag]Jaylen Bell[/autotag] and [autotag]Brett Bordelon[/autotag].

There is a lot of time between now and Walker’s national signing day, but LSU is looking to get out ahead of the crowd. Kelly has signed back-to-back top-ten recruiting classes and has propelled the Tigers to the top of the SEC West in only one season.

[mm-video type=video id=01gr2wm3bjz1tzmp08th playlist_id=01eqbz5s7cf4w69e0n player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01gr2wm3bjz1tzmp08th/01gr2wm3bjz1tzmp08th-94ecac2c303bf0527e447a0c1ca9e9f6.jpg]

[listicle id=64486]

Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.

LSU offers 2025 linebacker prospect

Mantrez Walker, a 6-foot linebacker from Buford, Georgia, is still early in his high school career but has a lot of potential..

[autotag]Mantrez Walker[/autotag] is a 2025, 6-foot, 210-pound linebacker from Buford, Georgia, where he plays for Buford High School. The Wolves are nationally recognized as one of the best teams in the country every year, and that hasn’t changed this season as the Wolves are 9-0 with one region game left before playoffs. The Wolves are going for their fourth straight GHSA 6A state championship.

Film Analysis: Walker isn’t the biggest linebacker in the world at 6-foot, but that doesn’t stop him from wreaking havoc against opposing teams. He is not afraid to bring the boom to anyone. He has great football instincts that help him be in the right place in just about every play.

FILM

This 2025 linebacker recruit listed Florida as his top school

Mantrez Walker, a top 2025 LB recruit, lists the Florida Gators as his early favorite to secure his signature.

Billy Napier and company are seeing their recruiting efforts pay off with some good publicity for the 2025 class.

[autotag]Mantrez Walker[/autotag], the 6-foot-2-inch, 210-pound linebacker out of Buford, Georgia, told On3’s Jeremey Johnson that the Gators are “at the top” of his recruitment. Walker took a visit to Gainesville last month and left with an offer in hand. He was even spotted at a recent practice wearing Florida Gators gloves.

While speaking to Johnson about his recruitment, Walker stated that the Florida offer was one he was looking forward to for a long time, stating that he felt Napier was “bringing back that old Florida mentality,” when describing how he felt about the program.

The rising high school sophomore has not been given an official ranking, as the rankings for the 2025 recruiting class have yet to be released by any of the big-name services.

In addition to the Gators, Walker currently holds offers from Arkansas, Georgia Tech, UCF, Duke, and South Carolina. He is also scheduled to visit Virginia Tech next week. Walker intends to return to campus multiple times this season for a handful of Gators home games, with those dates yet to be revealed.

While the On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine currently has Arkansas as the leader in Walker’s recruitment, On3’s Corey Bender credits that to the Razorback’s early offer and Walker’s multiple visits to Fayetteville. It seems like the Gators are poised to build a strong 2025 class around Walker.

[mm-video type=video id=01g8v1f70be6kez83tmc playlist_id=01eqbz250mdknqvm5z player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01g8v1f70be6kez83tmc/01g8v1f70be6kez83tmc-4ea15a2ee8b72cdb3d5b8e8bd6f23814.jpg]

[lawrence-related id=88162,88154,88137,88123,88121]

[listicle id=88059]

[listicle id=88028]

[listicle id=88018]

Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Let us know your thoughts and comment on this story below. Join the conversation today!