Tag: rasheed walker

Pair of Penn State offensive linemen included on watch list for Outland Trophy

Penn State has two offensive linemen named on the watch list for the Outland Trophy in 2021

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The quality of offensive linemen coming through Happy Valley continues to be on the rise, and the 2021 season could be one of the best yet under head coach James Franklin. On Monday, two pieces of the Penn State offensive line were named on the watch list for the Outland Trophy, awarded to the nation’s top interior lineman.

Offensive tackle Rasheed Walker and center Mike Miranda were among those named on the watch list for the Outland Trophy by the Football Writers Association of America. The Outland Trophy can go to an offensive or defensive lineman. The only qualification is playing an interior line position primarily.

Penn State has one Outland Trophy winner in the long history of the award. Mike Reid received the award in 1969 for his success on the defensive line. The Outland Trophy has been awarded annually since 1946.

Alabama’s Alex Leatherwood won the Outland Trophy for the 2020 season, giving Alabama six all-time Outland Trophy winners. Alabama has had three of the last five Outland Trophy winners. Nebraska has nine all-time Outland Trophy winners to lead the nation.

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Where does Mel Kiper rank Rasheed Walker among 2022 NFL draft prospects?

Draft expert Mel Kiper ranked his top 25 prospects for the 2022 NFL draft.

The 2021 NFL draft is already a distant memory as we shift to full-blown preseason mode for the upcoming college football season. But for some, the focus is already on the 2022 NFL draft. That includes Mel Kiper. Kiper hasn’t released a mock draft just yet, but he has ranked the top prospects on his radar.

Penn State offensive tackle Rasheed Walker has already received some way-too-early first-round draft expectations for 2022 by some, but Kiper is a tad less sold according to his rankings. Walker did not appear in the top 25 overall of Kiper’s top prospects.

Kiper included Walker in his list of the top 10 offensive tackles, ranking the Nittany Lion eighth among his fellow position mates around the country. Kiper’s ranking certainly plays a different tune from some other early looks at the NFL draft, and that’s perfectly normal. Kiper doesn’t always find himself in sync with some others this far out.

But including Walker among his top 10 offensive tackles does still show some respect toward Walker as a draft prospect. Being the eighth offensive tackle probably still nets Walker in the second round.

It’s also worth a reminder that this is simply a ranking of prospects overall and not necessarily how the draft will play out. As Kiper would admit freely, there is a stark difference between ranking players and figuring out what team needs are in need of addressing, followed by figuring out the exact order of the draft.

Of course, Walker will get the benefit of a full college football season to show whether or not Kiper should give him another hard look and consider bumping him up his rankings between now and the start of the 2022 NFL draft.

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Jahan Dotson and Rasheed Walker among Athlon Sports All-Big Ten players for 2021

Penn State had 10 players named to the Athlon Sports preseason All-Big Ten teams for 2021.

We are now officially in preseason mode. In addition to kickoff times being released, the preseason all-conference lists are starting to make the rounds. Athlon Sports released its 2021 All-Big Ten team heading into the upcoming season, and a few Penn State players were scattered throughout.

Penn State wide receiver Jahan Dotson and offensive lineman Rasheed Walker were included on the first-team offense. This is not too surprising given Dotson was among the Big Ten’s best receivers in 2020 and Walker is already being projected as a potential first-round draft pick in the 2022 NFL draft. Jaquan Brisker was the only Nittany Lion to appear on the first-team defense by Athlon Sports.

Offensive lineman Mike Miranda was the only Penn State player to appear on the second team for either offense or defense. Dotson was honored as the second-team punt returner, however.

Running back Noah Cain, defensive lineman P.J. Mustipher, linebacker Brandon Smith, and cornerback Tariq Castro-Fields appear on the third team. Wide receiver Parker Washington made the fourth team.

Penn State’s 10 players making the four all-conference teams by Athlon Sports is tied for the third-most in the Big Ten. Ohio State leads the way with 13 players. Wisconsin and Iowa each had 11 players included. Indiana also had 10 players represented. For what it is worth, Rutgers had nine players and Michigan had seven. Make of that what you will.

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Todd McShay mocks star OT to Ravens in early look at 2022 draft

The Baltimore Ravens didn’t select an offensive tackle in the 2021 draft for the Ravens, but Todd McShay mocked one to the team in 2022

The Baltimore Ravens just wrapped up a phenominal 2021 NFL draft, selecting eight players who have the potential to turn into solid contributors at the next level. However, some people are already looking ahead to the 2022 NFL draft, including ESPN’s Todd McShay.

McShay released an early 2022 mock draft, and he had Baltimore picking at No. 26, which was chosen by combining multiple 2022 power rankings lists from different analysts. With that 26th pick, McShay selected star offensive tackle Rasheed Walker out of Penn State University for the Ravens.

Walker is highly regarded as one of the best tackles in the nation. He’s played at a high level when he’s on the field, and would be a welcome addition on Baltimore’s offensive line. McShay thinks that he would fit extremely well with the Ravens.

“The 6-foot-6, 312-pound Walker has 22 starts at left tackle in college, and the Maryland native could step into a starting role on the right side opposite Ronnie Stanley”

As McShay notes, Walker has established himself as a left tackle, so a move to the right side would be necessary to play in Baltimore’s offensive unit. Since the Ravens didn’t invest in an offensive tackle in the 2021 draft, it wouldn’t be at all surprising for the team to select a tackle in 2022, especially one of Walker’s caliber.

Draft Wire’s way-too-early 2022 NFL mock draft has Rasheed Walker reunited with this former Nittany Lion first rounder

Could the Dallas Cowboys draft a Penn State player in the first round again in 2022?

With the book closed on the 2021 NFL draft, the focus is already shifting to the 2022 NFL draft. Penn State offensive tackle Rasheed Walker is highly regarded in many of the early looks to next year’s draft pool, with many already floating the idea that Walker could very well be a first-round pick of some NFL team.

With that in mind, Draft Wire has put together a way-too-early mock draft for the 2022 NFL draft, and Walker does indeed land in the first round. On top of that, Walker is projected to be reunited with another former first-round pick out of Happy Valley.

According to Draft Wire’s first look at next year’s draft, Wallace could be picked up by the Dallas Cowboys with the No. 22 overall draft pick. The Cowboys spent their first-round pick in the 2021 NFL draft on Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons.

Drafting an offensive lineman in the first round would make sense for the Cowboys, as it was believed to be an area the franchise should address more in the 2021 NFL draft. Instead, the Cowboys focused their energy on bulking up on defense, especially at the linebacker position. Perhaps next year will see Dallas attempt to make moves to restabilize their offensive line. If that is the case, then the selection of Walker would make plenty of sense.

Without doing much research, it would seem like a bit of an oddity for any NFL team to use a first-round pick on a player from the same school two years in a row, but that would certainly be a fun little development to watch unfold.

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2021 Penn State Nittany Lions Profile Card: Rasheed Walker

Offensive lineman Rasheed Walker has first-round draft aspirations as he returns for another year with Penn State.

Name: Rasheed Walker

Number: 53

Position: Offensive Tackle

Class: Redshirt Junior

Height: 6′-6″

Weight: 312

Hometown: Waldorf, MD

High School: North Point

Twitter: @Cin5oTre3

Overview

As Penn State’s quality at offensive line continues to improve overall, Rasheed Walker may be the best to play for the Nittany Lions under head coach James Franklin. The 6’6″ left tackle has established himself as one of the top protectors of quarterback Sean Clifford and he is already drawing the eyes of the NFL draft world with high expectations for the 2022 NFL draft.

Walker decided to come back to Penn State in 2021 despite being eligible to go to the 2021 NFL draft is he desired. As a result, Penn State’s offensive line will return one of the top offensive linemen in the Big Ten, if not the nation. Better yet, Walker already has plenty of experience under his belt.

Walker has started 22 games for Penn State, with each of his starts coming at the left tackle position. Walker earned third-team All-Big Ten by the media and honorable mention by the coaches in the 2020 season, but draft experts are already ranking him on the top prospects to watch lists for the 2022 NFL draft.

Walker was a four-star recruit in Penn State’s Class of 2018, a class that also included linebacker Micah Parsons, defensive end Odafe Oweh, and Pat Freiermuth. All three of those players were chosen in the first two rounds of the 2021 NFL draft. It is also a class that included some key players on the Penn State roster in 2021, including defensive lineman PJ Mustipher and wide receiver Jahan Dotson.

But Walker is a player that will stand alone and is arguably the best player on the roster. He may not make the highlight plays, but his ability to block could allow for those big plays to have time to develop.

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