Is Georgia Football about to become Pass Rusher U?

D’Andre Walker could set the standard:

If there is one player that could make ‘a leap’ in 2018 it’s Walker. He really got stronger as the season went on last year. By the time Georgia was in the CFP, he was playing more snaps than Bellamy and making a big impact. He accounted for a sack in the Rose Bowl victory and was a menace for most of the second half.

Walker has taken a while to get to this point. He’s always had talent, but he hasn’t been able to translate that to production on the field until last season. To start with, he needed to get bigger and put on some weight. At times, he’s been around the 215lb mark and that just isn’t heavy enough to be an OLB in this scheme and stop the run.

Now, he’s up to 245lbs and it shows. He’s finally the right size to play the position and that’s enabled him to get on the field more. Kirby Smart and Mel Tucker don’t have to worry about him against the run anymore. He also seems to have stopped making the mental errors that plagued him at times earlier in his career. In short, he looks ready to dominate.

Right now, Walker has a shot to be a double digit sack player in the 2018 season. He has better pass rushing moves than either Carter or Bellamy and I really expect to see him become a key member of the defense this season. If that happens, he could end up being drafted higher than Carter was last year in the 3rd round. That would certainly start the trend of what could well happen over the next 3-4 years.