Travon Walker had the kind of season that every freshman would aspire to have.

He made plays, including one very big one.

The former 5-star DT from Thomaston’s Upson-Lee High is no longer known to most of DawgNation as the guy who reset the recruiting narrative about elite defensive tackle in Athens.

He’s the promising young defender who put the nail in that Auburn win at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Walker is no longer seen around DawgNation as the nation’s No. 3 DT from his recruiting class from the 247Sports Composite ratings.

His career arc already includes getting on the field, being one of the baddest men in college football on kickoff coverage in the SEC and being called “extremely athletic” by his head coach.

He was talking about a defensive tackle who excelled in track and on state basketball championship teams in high school.

And he did all of that at around 285 pounds on Saturdays.

Walker was quite solemn after the tough loss to LSU on Saturday night. That’s because the team goals for his squad were not met.

“Try to win the natty,” Walker said. “That’s one goal that we fell short on this year but we’ve got plenty of years to come for that.”

Walker got to go against the likely Heisman Trophy winner in LSU’s splendid Joe Burrow.

“He’s a pretty good athlete,” Walker said. “He can stand in the pocket and make plays. He can stretch plays out. He’s a great player.”

When he thinks about his first year in Athens, he focused on the sum of everything. Rather than just specific plays or games.

“I want to say from year one I really just took in on how the college experience is going to be,” Walker told DawgNation. “How fast the tempo of the game is going to be and all that. It is a lot to look forward to coming in the next years.”

What will that future look like?

“It is big,” Walker said. “It starts now, though. That’s why it is going to very big. It starts now.”

Travon Walker has some lofty goals in mind for the next few years at UGA. (Jeff Sentell/DawgNation)/Dawgnation)

Travon Walker: What else is there for DawgNation? 

Walker touched on a lot of topics regarding his freshmen year in the featured video above this post. His deep voice is still everpresent in any conversation.

He shared his thoughts on:

  • What did it feel like walking off the field after the tough loss to LSU? Did it hurt?
  • Who helped him with the transition this year as a true freshman?
  • How did he view his impact on the team as a freshman this year?
  • Did that big play against Auburn motivate him for the rest of the season?
  • How does he be even better in his second year in the program?
  • The brotherhood that exists between him and his roommates Nakobe Dean and Nolan Smith
  • Why Georgia was the right college decision for him

RELATED: Check out the DawgNation conversation with former No. 1 overall prospect Nolan Smith after his first season in Athens