Devontez "Tez" Walker (born June 19, 2001), is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

wide receiver. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Kent State Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in Ash ...

and

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

Early life

Walker was born on June 19, 2001, in

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

, later attending

West Charlotte High School West Charlotte High School (also called Dub-C or WC) is a comprehensive high school in west Charlotte, near Beatties Ford Road in Charlotte, North Carolina. It is state-funded. History West Charlotte High School was founded in 1938. The original ...

. In Walker's high school career, he brought in 48 receptions for 923 yards and 2 touchdowns. Walker also played on defense racking up 36 tackles, ten pass deflections, and six interceptions. Walker committed to play

at North Carolina Central.

College career

North Carolina Central

Enrolling at North Carolina Central in 2020, Walker did not play in any games as the FCS season had been canceled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

Kent State

Walker transferred to

in 2021. He made his collegiate debut in week one of the 2021 season, where he caught one pass for three yards, as Kent State was defeated by #6 Texas A&M 41–10. In the team's

bowl game In North America, a bowl game is one of a number of post-season college football games that are primarily played by teams belonging to the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). For most of its history, the Division I Bowl Subdivis ...

, Walker caught one pass for 74 yards and a touchdown in Kent State's Golden Flashes' 52–38 loss against

Wyoming Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...

. Walker finished the 2021 season with five receptions for 124 yards and a touchdown. The 2022 season was a strong one for Walker. Against reigning national champions

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, Walker had one of the best performances of his career, with seven receptions for 106 yards and a touchdown, but Kent State lost to the Bulldogs 39–22. Walker had good performances the following two weeks, catching six passes for 107 yards against

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, and 11 receptions for 159 yards and two touchdowns in a loss to Miami (OH), 27–24. In the team's season finale, Walker scored the game-winning touchdown, catching five passes for 84 yards, as Kent State ended the season with a win against Buffalo. Walker finished his 2022 season with 58 receptions for 921 yards and 11 touchdowns, while also adding 29 yards and a touchdown on the ground, and was named first team All-MAC. Following the conclusion of the season and departure of head coach Sean Lewis, Walker entered the transfer portal.

North Carolina

After departing Kent State, Walker returned to his home state, transferring to

. Walker was named to the 2023 Preseason All ACC Team. In a controversial and highly criticized decision, the NCAA ruled Walker a two-time transfer, and he was initially denied eligibility for 2023. After missing four games due to the issue, Walker's eligibility was reinstated for the remainder of the 2023 season. Walker returned to action against

Syracuse Syracuse may refer to: Places Italy *Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa'' *Province of Syracuse United States *Syracuse, New York **East Syracuse, New York **North Syracuse, New York *Syracuse, Indiana * Syracuse, Kansas *Syracuse, Miss ...

and played in eight games, catching 41 passes for 699 yards and seven touchdowns. He caught six passes for 132 yards and three touchdowns in his second game back against

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

. Walker declared for the NFL draft after the conclusion of the regular season, opting out of the

Duke's Mayo Bowl The Duke’s Mayo Bowl is an annual college football bowl game that has been played at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina, since 2002. The game currently features a matchup between a team from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) ...

in the process.

Professional career

References

External links

North Carolina Tar Heels bioKent State Golden Flashes bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Devontez 2001 births Living people Players of American football from Charlotte, North Carolina American football wide receivers North Carolina Central Eagles football players Kent State Golden Flashes football players North Carolina Tar Heels football players