PISCATAWAY, N.J. – DL Jordan Walker represents Rutgers football on the list of Burlsworth Trophy nominees announced this week. The Trophy is given to the most outstanding football player who began his career as a walk-on and has shown outstanding performance on the field.

From unrecruited out of high school, to prep school, to a walk-on on offense, to a contributor on defense, Walker was voted a team captain this season for the Scarlet Knights. The defensive lineman has played in each of the past 24 games with five starts and recently batted down a pass that led to a recovered fumble and the game-winning field goal at Purdue.

A native of Rochester, New York, Walker's senior year at Rush-Henritta High School was disrupted in 2020 due to the pandemic. The season moved to the spring, as Walker hit the camp circuit after and decided to take a prep year at Milford Academy. Playing wide receiver for the Falcons, Walker hauled in 15 receptions for 258 yards and caught the eye of the Rutgers staff. From there, Walker was offered a spot as a walk-on for the Scarlet Knights, where he joined the program as a tight end.

He moved over to defense and tied for the team lead with four sacks in 2024, including one for a safety in the comeback win over Minnesota. The performance rated among the top 15 defensive ends in the Big Ten by Pro Football Focus.

Voted a captain as an underclassman, Walker is a two-time Academic All-Big Ten selection as a criminal justice major.

The Burlsworth Trophy Award Show to honor the three finalists and to announce the 2025 winner will be on Dec. 8 in Bentonville, Arkansas.



Rutgers Walk-Ons: Team Captains
1993: Bill Bailey
1996: Rob Seeger
1999: Shaun O'Hara
2002: Gary Brackett
2004: Ray Pilch
2006: Ramel Meekins
2007: Brandon Renkert
2010: Howard Barbieri
2014: Michael Burton
2015: Paul James
2017: Darnell Davis
2020: Lawrence Stevens
2023-24: Joe Lusardi
2024: Christian Dremel
2025: Jordan Walker

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