Wesley Walker had everything figured out – until he didn’t.
The Tennessee defensive back was all set to have a major impact on the 2022 season after transferring from Georgia Tech during the offseason. That notion was very much in jeopardy during preseason camp when an injury limited how much he could participate in practice.
“It was a little frustrating, but it was also something that was out of my control, so maybe if I was younger, I probably would have dwelled on it. I probably would have gotten angry a little, but it’s out of my control, the way it happened so I didn’t really take it to heart,” the former standout from Ensworth School in Nashville said. “I knew when I got back, I just had to get right back to it, get in the form I was getting to during camp, so I didn’t really stress it.”
That must have worked. Walker turned in a key sack against Pitt that forced a turnover on downs. Sacks are supposed to come from defensive linemen and linebackers, not defensive backs, right? Walker didn’t let that stop him on Saturday.
“It was really a good job by the whole defense,” Walker said. “I went back and watched the play again. Everyone really held the disguise until the snap. I feel like the Pittsburgh quarterback, (Kedon) Slovis, checked the field. We wanted to show man, we showed man.”
Walker said he knew from his pre-snap read that Slovis was going to throw to his right, which was the short side of the field.
“He checked the boundary (side) and we took away what he was looking for,” Walker said. “I was there in time for him to not be able to look at his second read.”
Now, it seems Walker has things figured out.
