How Mizzou football DE Johnny Walker Jr. stayed patient, took opportunity in 1st start

Johnny Walker Jr. has been waiting a CoMo minute for his shot with Mizzou football.

Stuck behind Isaiah McGuire, a third-round pick by the Cleveland Browns in April, and Trajan Jeffcoat, who transferred to Arkansas at the end of last season, at defensive end on the depth chart for most of the past three seasons at Missouri, Walker’s limited reps all came in reserve. The addition of graduate transfer DJ Coleman last season didn’t help his cause.

So when Walker got his chance — his first start in four seasons — Thursday night against South Dakota in Missouri’s 35-10 season-opening win, he wasn’t much in a waiting mood.

Walker combined with transfer edge Nyles Gaddy for the Tigers’ first sack of the season, shaking off the Coyotes’ left tackle and getting the first hand on quarterback Aidan Bouman before a black-and-gold-clad pileup sent the QB horizontal on his eighth play of the night.

He barrelled through the B-Gap on the very first play of the second half to flatten USD tailback Mike Mansaray for a four-yard loss. Three plays later, the running back looked to have broken the edge, but Walker got a hand on him and tossed him out of bounds for no gain.

The end result?

Walker finished the day as Missouri’s leading tackler, making his way off Faurot Field with six total hits and the lone quarterback hurry of the evening. He was on the field for 39 defensive snaps, two more than team captain Darius Robinson and double digits more than any other defensive end.

That’s been a long time coming.

No need to tell him.

“I’ve always been a grinder, man,” Walker said. “I’ve been waiting my time, and it’s finally my time right now.”

MU cornerback Ennis Rakestraw Jr. was the first to pay Walker his dues after the game.

There were plenty of chances, the corner said, to enter the transfer portal over the past three years and head somewhere the minutes might flow faster.

“He worked. Hard worker,” Rakestraw said. “He had opportunities to leave if he wanted, but he stayed, bought in. Now look at the (choice) and what he’s doing for the Tigers.”

Walker stuck it out.

His patience is being repaid.

“I understood the guys ahead of me — obviously, they’re in the NFL now,” Walker said. “So I just feel like it was my time to wait and eventually I would take over. It took patience. It was frustrating, but obviously it worked out in my favor.”

Biding his time was only the half of it. Rakestraw noted that Walker simply wasn’t ready when he first appeared in Columbia.

How so?

When the edge rusher first showed up on campus, Rakestraw thought he was a wide receiver. Walker weighed 190 pounds. That’s a step removed from live bait for a Southeastern Conference offensive lineman.

That had to change, and it did.

Walker said he now stands a sturdy 260. On his 6-foot-3 frame, that’ll play far more comfortably.

At the beginning of fall camp, Missouri defensive coordinator Blake Baker previewed Walker’s changes — and his potential to grab the starting gig. He credited the end-in-wait for his offseason preparation, noting the additional 18 pounds he was able to add between checking in as a sophomore and junior.

“He’s done really well,” Baker said July 30, when players reported for training camp. “The biggest surprise from him this spring was how strong he is at the point of attack. I don’t know how strong he is in the weight room, but he holds point as good as Isaiah or DJ did last year.”

But Walker still needed to earn the role.

The Tigers nabbed St. Louis native Joe Moore from Arizona State, Gaddy out of Jackson State and Austin Firestone from Northwestern out of the portal to bolster their edge. Robinson began splitting his reps between the interior and exterior.

Walker’s longest outing before Thursday was in the Tigers’ Gasparilla Bowl loss to Wake Forest last season. Even then, he was snubbed for the start for Robinson, who until then had only repped at defensive tackle, and now-Colorado Buffalo Arden Walker.

He finished the night against the Demon Deacons with two solo tackles and an assist. Since joining the team in 2020, he had made 16 appearances, all in reserve, totaling 16 tackles.

There was every chance Thursday night could have been more of the same.

“He hasn’t had the reps,” Baker said before camp. “He has to go out and prove it, but he helped himself a lot this spring.”

He proved it in camp, getting the first start. He helped himself in Game 1, too.

Sure, it was South Dakota. Yes, the brutes lie in wait.

But Walker waited his turn, and he delivered at the first call to action. Next up for Walker: Middle Tennesse State on Saturday in Columbia, and the quest for a second start.

“Just stacking days,” he said. “I just can't get big-headed, I can't feel myself. I mean, just (going to) get back to work.”

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Missouri football: DE Johnny Walker Jr. took opportunity in 1st start