{"id":1486569,"date":"2024-02-01T08:00:19","date_gmt":"2024-02-01T16:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dynastyleaguefootball.com\/?p=1486569"},"modified":"2024-02-01T05:54:35","modified_gmt":"2024-02-01T13:54:35","slug":"2024-dynasty-rookie-early-look-devontez-walker-wr-north-carolina","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dynastyleaguefootball.com\/2024\/02\/01\/2024-dynasty-rookie-early-look-devontez-walker-wr-north-carolina\/","title":{"rendered":"2024 Dynasty Rookie Early Look: Devontez Walker, WR North Carolina"},"content":{"rendered":"

The depth at the wide receiver position entering the 2024 NFL draft has been widely reported and covered. There are obviously the big names at the top, but the depth is really bolstered by players like Devontez Walker<\/a> out of North Carolina. Walker has endured a more unique college experience than most potential pro prospects and finds himself as one of the more polarizing players leading up to April\u2019s draft.<\/p>\n

Recruitment<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Walker took an incredibly long, and difficult, journey to get to where he is now. During his senior season in West Charlotte, NC the three-star WR had 91 catches for 1,153 yards. During the spring he signed with East Tennessee State University to play football during the 2019 season. However, in the summer before he was supposed to enroll at ETSU, he tore his ACL, and his future with the school was up in the air.<\/p>\n

ETSU said they would allow Walker to \u201cgray shirt\u201d which meant he would delay joining the team until the following Spring of 2020 when he was finally healthy. This also meant he couldn\u2019t start school in the fall like a typical college student and instead had to stay home and rehab. To pay for the rehab and subsequent training, Walker had to get a job at a local Bojangles.<\/p>\n

During this time of rehab during the fall of 2019, Walker was offered a chance to play again at North Carolina Central for the following 2020 season. However, things just kept getting more difficult for Walker once he finally stepped foot on a college campus.<\/p>\n

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Courtesy of <\/em>247 Sports<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

College Career<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Walker\u2019s recruiting was hard, but college was more of the same. We all know what happened in the spring of 2020. COVID-19 threw a wrench in every team\u2019s plans and North Carolina Central was forced to cancel the 2020 football season and Walker went another fall without playing. He practiced a few times in the spring of 2021, and he played in North Carolina Central\u2019s spring game, but Walker felt like he could play at a higher level.<\/p>\n

So he entered the transfer portal.<\/p>\n

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Courtesy of <\/em>Sports Reference<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Walker ended up at Kent State where he endured a rocky 2021. He was two years removed from an ACL injury and yet to play another meaningful snap of football so there were growing pains during what was essentially his freshman season. However, everything clicked in 2022 when he accumulated 58 catches for 921 yards and 11 touchdowns. One of his best games of the season came against Georgia, where he finished the day with seven catches, 106 yards, and a touchdown.<\/p>\n

Following the 2022 season, there was a mass exodus from Kent State with head coach Sean Lewis\u2019s departure. So Walker entered the transfer portal again and the only place he wanted to go was North Carolina so he could be closer to his family. Following his transfer to UNC, the NCAA changed its rule on multi-time transfers, and North Carolina was forced to submit multiple relief waivers requesting that Walker be allowed to play.<\/p>\n

Devontez Walker\u2019s story made national headlines throughout the first month of the season as the NCAA drug their feet in their decision-making and ultimately cost Walker the first four games of his season. The NCAA ultimately reversed course and allowed him to play the final eight games.<\/p>\n

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Courtesy of <\/em>Pro Football Focus<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

During those eight games at UNC this season, Walker had 41 catches for 699 yards and seven touchdowns. Extrapolating a small sample size isn\u2019t always smart, but I think it works for Walker\u2019s situation. Those numbers translate to a full season of 62 catches for 1,050 yards and 11 touchdowns which would have been a tremendous final college campaign.<\/p>\n

Strengths<\/strong><\/h3>\n