THOMASTON — Travon Walker made his college commitment from a small gathering at the Fine Arts Center at Upson-Lee High School on Tuesday night.
His decision came down to Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Georgia and South Carolina. The 5-star DT prospect chose UGA as part of a live broadcast that was streamed across several outlets.
The decision will now mean several things for the Bulldogs going forward:
- It adds the fourth prospect with a 5-star rating to the 2019 class. Georgia is the only program this year with four elite 5-star prospects. LSU and Oklahoma are the only programs with two prospects with that coveted 5-star rating.
- Walker gives the Bulldogs a huge in-state commitment at a major position of need. The Bulldogs add the nation’s No. 2 DT prospect on the 247Sports composite rankings. He’s also seen as the nation’s No. 26 overall prospect nationally on that same scale.
- The senior from Upson-Lee High School is a three-sport athlete. He played on a state championship basketball team and also made the state finals in the shot put this year at the Georgia High School Association state meet.
- He will not enroll early. His two-time defending state champion Knights haven’t lost a game on the basketball court in two seasons. Walker will aim to extend that 63-game win streak going forward during his senior season.
- Georgia has a dire need to shore up the DT spot with elite talent in its 2019 class. Walker checks that box. Clearly.
- The 6-foot-5, 275-pound prospect is a major coup that will enhance the recruiting reputation of defensive line coach Tray Scott. The Bulldogs had missed on a few of the state’s top defensive line prospects (Derrick Brown, Aubrey Solomon) over the last few cycles.
What else does the Travon Walker decision mean for UGA?
Walker is an intriguing prospect. While he rates as the nation’s No. 26 overall recruit on the composite scale, his singular 247Sports rating shows off an even more impressive rating.
That site now ranks Walker as the No. 1 player in Georgia for this cycle and as the No. 7 prospect overall nationally.
He’s now the second highest-rated pledge in the UGA class based off his 247Sports rating.
His decision will also boost the Bulldogs in the 247Sports team composite standings for this cycle, too. With Walker on the board, the class now has 13 pledges for this cycle.
The new 5-star also takes the Bulldogs from No. 9 to No. 4 nationally with this class. Georgia now only trails No. 1 Alabama and No. 2 Texas A&M among SEC schools on those aforementioned team standings.