New South Carolina signee named one of Rivals' top Signing Day flips

On Thursday, South Carolina managed to flip four-star EDGE Julian Walker from the Michigan Wolverines. The new Gamecock pledge then signed his paperwork to make things official with USC.

In South Carolina’s 2026 signing class, Walker (No. 72 nationally in the Rival Industry Ranking and No. 26 nationally in the Rivals300) ranks behind only Darius Gray (No. 45) in the Rival Industry Ranking and behind only Zyon Guiles (No. 24) in the Rivals300. Ranked 26th, he is also within future five-star range in the Rivals300.

The (second day of) Signing Day pilfering made national recruiting waves. In fact, Rivals’ Greg Smith called the flip one of college football’s best in the class of 2026. Walker’s Michigan-to-South-Carolina swap was one of Smith’s six biggest flips of the cycle.

Walker’s choice primarily came down to the Wolverines and the Gamecocks, but the North Carolina Tar Heels got involved late. His high school coach, Tom Knotts, even said that head coach Bill Belichick was “throwing money at him.”

In the end, though, relationships with South Carolina won out. Walker’s father, Jamil Walker, is on the strength staff at USC. Head coach Shane Beamer, defensive ends/outside linebackers coach Sterling Lucas, and defensive line coach Travian Robertson all have strong relationships with the dynamic pass rusher.

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A product of Dutch Fork High School just outside of Columbia, Walker will get to stay home with the Gamecocks. At 6-6 and 255 pounds, he could be a candidate to play early, though he has considerable developmental upside, too.

On Saturday, two days after his signing, Walker wrapped up a state championship season with the Silver Foxes. He was arguably the player of the game, as he logged three sacks and a defensive touchdown against Summerville.

Walker’s next time on a field will be in garnet and black. He will be part of a group of EDGE players looking to help replace the production of graduates Bryan Thomas Jr., JT Geer, and Demon Clowney.

Rising junior Dylan Stewart, rising senior Desmond Umeozulu, rising sophomore Jaylen Brown, and rising redshirt freshmen Jaquavious Dodd, Anthony Addison, and Kobby Sakyi-Prah all have eligibility remaining in the room. Redshirt senior George Wilson is also expected to apply for an additional year after an injury sidelined him for all of 2025.

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