| Wide receiver | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Date of birth: April 1, 1994 | |
| Place of birth: Brookside, California | |
| Career information | |
| College: UCLA | |
| Undrafted in 2017 | |
| No regular season or postseason appearances | |
| Career history | |
* Jacksonville Jaguars ( 2017)*
| |
| Roster status: Active | |
| CFL status: International | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Receptions | |
| Receiving yards | |
| Touchdowns | |
| Rushing attempts | |
| Rushing yards | |
Kenneth Walker III (born April 1, 1994) is an American football wide receiver for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at UCLA from 2012 to 2016. He was also a sprinter on the UCLA track and field team.
Early years[]
Walker was born in 1994. He grew up in Richmond in California's East Bay area. After a troubled childhood being raised by a single mother, Walker excelled in both track and football at Freedom High School in Oakley, California, and then at Richmond's John F. Kennedy High School. He won three Junior Olympics titles in the hurdles and became an excellent student and a top-rated high school football player.[1][2] He received playing time in high school as a running back, receiver, punter, kick returner and quarterback.[2]
According to ESPN, Walker received more than 12 scholarship offers to play college football.[3] Walker orally committed in August 2011 to the University of California, Berkeley.[3] Five months later, in February 2012, he switched his commitment from Cal to UCLA.[4]
College athletics[]
Walker enrolled at UCLA in 2012 and played at the wide receiver position for the UCLA Bruins football team.[5][6][7][8][9] He appeared in 12 games as a true freshman in 2012, missed the 2013 season with a back injury, and appeared in nine games in 2014, 13 games in 2015, and 11 games in 2016.[2][10] He started nine games for UCLA in 2015 and seven in 2016.[2] Walker had two 100-yard receiving games during the 2016 season: 115 yards and a touchdown on six receptions against Texas A&M on September 3;[11] and 114 yards and two touchdowns on two receptions against Arizona on October 1.[12]
Walker also competed as a sprinter for the UCLA track team.[5]
Professional career[]
Walker was signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted free agent following the 2017 NFL Draft.[13] He was waived on August 14, 2017.[14] In 2018, he signed with the Arizona Hotshots for the inaugural 2019 season of the Alliance of American Football,[15] but was waived in January 2019 as part of the final roster cuts before the season opener.[16] He signed with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League on March 18, 2019. He was released during final roster cuts on June 9, but was re-signed to the team's practice roster the same day. He was promoted to the active roster on July 18.
References[]
- ↑ Janis Carr (September 27, 2012). "Walker's path to UCLA had some sharp turns". The Orange County Register. https://www.ocregister.com/2012/09/27/walkers-path-to-ucla-had-some-sharp-turns/.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Kenneth Walker III". UCLA. http://uclabruins.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=2896. Retrieved January 18, 2018.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Jimmy Durkin (August 26, 2011). "Kennedy High-Richmond football player Kenneth Walker III orally commits to Cal". The Mercury News. https://www.mercurynews.com/2011/08/26/kennedy-high-richmond-football-player-kenneth-walker-iii-orally-commits-to-cal/.
- ↑ Jimmy Durkin (February 1, 2012). "Kennedy-Richmond receiver switches from Cal to UCLA". The Mercury News. https://www.mercurynews.com/2012/02/01/east-bay-recruits-kennedy-richmond-receiver-switches-from-cal-to-ucla/.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "UCLA receiver Kenneth Walker III is looking like one of the good-hands people" (in en-US). Los Angeles Times. 2016-09-07. ISSN 0458-3035. http://www.latimes.com/sports/ucla/la-sp-ucla-kenneth-walker-20160907-snap-story.html.
- ↑ "Kenneth Walker III - 2017 Track & Field Roster - UCLABruins.com | UCLA Athletics" (in en). http://www.uclabruins.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=2896.
- ↑ "After overcoming hurdles, speedster Kenneth Walker III seeks NFL shot". http://dailybruin.com/2016/09/09/after-overcoming-hurdles-speedster-kenneth-walker-iii-seeks-nfl-shot/.
- ↑ "Kenneth Walker III returns to Richmond" (in en-US). Inside UCLA with Thuc Nhi Nguyen. 2016-12-28. http://www.insidesocal.com/ucla/2016/12/28/kenneth-walker-iii-returns-to-richmond/.
- ↑ NGUYEN, THUC NHI. "UCLA receiver Kenneth Walker III believes he will catch on as a leader" (in en-US). The Orange County Register. http://www.ocregister.com/articles/walker-712172-coach-johnson.html.
- ↑ Ryan O'Halloran (August 5, 2017). "Pro Day show earned Kenneth Walker a shot with Jaguars". The Florida Times-Union. http://jacksonville.com/sports/jaguars/2017-08-05/pro-day-show-earned-kenneth-walker-shot-jaguars.
- ↑ "Kenneth Walker III posts career high as receiver for UCLA". The Richmond Standard. September 6, 2016. http://richmondstandard.com/2016/09/06/kenneth-walker-iii-posts-career-high-as-receiver-for-ucla/.
- ↑ "Walker records another 62-yard TD catch; McKinley nets sack for UCLA". The Richmond Standard. October 3, 2016. http://richmondstandard.com/2016/10/03/walker-records-another-62-yard-td-catch-mckinley-nets-sack-for-ucla/.
- ↑ Oehser, John. "2017 offseason: Undrafted free agents bring roster to 90". http://www.jaguars.com/news/article-JaguarsNews/2017-offseason-Undrafted-free-agents-bring-roster-to-90/b683e8d5-c997-46a8-aaa2-d3302b557676. Retrieved July 12, 2017.
- ↑ "Jaguars claim cornerback Charles James II off waivers". August 14, 2017. http://www.jaguars.com/news/article-JaguarsNews/Jaguars-claim-cornerback-Charles-James-II-off-waivers/433524aa-1e17-4487-9733-753ef09407e0.
- ↑ Nguyen, Thuc Nhi (10 October 2018). "Former UCLA receiver Kenneth Walker III inspires through new children’s book". https://www.dailynews.com/2018/10/10/former-ucla-receiver-kenneth-walker-iii-inspires-through-new-childrens-book/. Retrieved 17 December 2018.
- ↑ "Arizona Hotshots Week One Game Time Changed". February 2, 2019. https://www.oursportscentral.com/services/releases/arizona-hotshots-week-one-game-time-changed/n-5444144. Retrieved 2019-02-12.
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