High School Football: Walker, McKown head reloaded Judge team

According to Judge linebacker Zack McKown, teammate Keenyn Walker was originally ticketed to be a JV player at the start of last season.

Umm, yeah, he was a little better than that.

Walker came up with one interception and nearly had another in Judge's season-opening win over North Sanpete, and that was all it took for his teammates and coaches to figure out that this kid had star potential.

"He played one half," said McKown, "and it was like, 'He's got to be a varsity player.'"

Walker continued to shine from that moment through the end of last season, which concluded when Judge fell to Logan in the Class 3A championship game, and the senior-to-be is one of several key returning components on a Judge team that hopes to accomplish even more this fall.

"He's a great, big kid," coach James Cordova said when asked to describe Walker's strengths at cornerback. "You can't really go over him. He's 6-foot-2. He's got a 185-pound frame. He's got great size, and he's a great athlete. His ability to see and adjust to the ball is amazing."

While Walker also starred at wide receiver last fall and will do so again this fall, it was his ability to see and adjust to the ball on defense that really wowed prep fans — not to mention himself.

He more-or-less knew what his role would on offense before last season, but that wasn't the case defensively.

"I surprised myself on the defensive side of the ball," he said.

Even after Walker began to become a known commodity last fall, he still continued to come up with pick after pick, and when all was said and done, Walker finished with 11 interceptions to lead the entire state.

"A kid getting more than four interceptions is good," pointed out Cordova. "Not that four interceptions is in any way, shape or form the norm, but four interceptions is good ... 11 interceptions is unbelievable. It's something you can't write.

"It's interesting because even after people knew what he was capable of, they still went after him, and he had some interceptions that were amazing. He had an interception (against Union) where he tipped the ball, spun around, caught the ball and returned it for 45 yards."

Plays like that have caught the attention of college recruiters. While he hasn't yet received any official offers, he said that almost every Pac-10 school except for USC has shown interest in him. A three-star recruit according to rivals.com, Walker said he believes he's close to receiving a formal offer from Washington.

However, he's also considering playing collegiate baseball, and it could be a while before he sorts out his future.

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