Skip to main content
Michigan

On300 EDGE Julian Walker commits to Michigan over home-state South Carolina

On3 imageby: Ethan McDowell07/01/25ethanmmcdowell
Julian Walker (2)
Julian Walker

Michigan’s momentum on the recruiting trail is undeniable at this point, especially along the defensive line. On300 edge rusher Julian Walker committed to the Wolverines Tuesday afternoon, picking the program over South Carolina and others. 

He’s the No. 136 recruit in the country. The 6-6, 240-pound defensive lineman from Columbia (S.C.) Dutch Fork High ascended the recruiting rankings this year as his offer list expanded to include Michigan, Missouri, Kentucky and others. 

His father, Jamil, is a strength and conditioning coach at South Carolina. Despite that extremely strong family connection to the Gamecocks, e picked the Wolverines after a recruitment-shifting Victors Weekend official visit. 

“As a parent, I’ve been blown away, and the coaching side of me has been blown away, seeing it from places I’ve been in my life,” Jamil told The Wolverine after the official visit. “And, the father in me is like, ‘How in the world, as a father, do you not see yourself in a place like this, that’s so in depth with getting these guys prepared for life and putting a standard up?’ Their standard is out of this world. You’re really at a loss for words. You really are.”

Walker checks into the On300 as the No. 20 edge rusher nationally and the No. 3 recruit in South Carolina. He recorded 50 total tackles as a junior, including 10 stops for loss, 2 defended passes and 1 fumble recovery. 

The rapidly rising defensive line prospect was unranked early this year before quickly emerging as one of the nation’s more intriguing pass rushing prospects. Walker told The Wolverine that he has an 81-inch wingspan to go along with his towering height. 

He has experience playing in both even and odd fronts and will be a versatile piece of this pass rushing class. The Wolverines pitched him on the opportunity to line up all over their defensive front. 

“Their scheme’s built so you could really play anywhere any week,” Walker said in a previous interview. 

Walker is a unique player, so finding the right defensive scheme played a big role in his decision. Michigan offered early this year, and the staff made a few trips down to Dutch Fork to see Walker. 

Defensive line coach Lou Esposito was his primary recruiter, but assistant defensive line coach David Denham also played a critical role here. Walker and Denham knew each other from the coach’s time at Charlotte. 

His official visit went extremely well, and he continued to bond with five-star edge rusher Carter Meadows, who pledged to the program Sunday. Walker decided to speed up his own decision-making process and commit to U-M this week. He’s the No. 20 commit in the nation’s tenth-ranked recruiting class. 

You may also like