Utah State lands in-state OL
Led by new head coach and former Utah defensive coordinator Gary Andersen, Utah State is hoping to turn things around after going 9-38 in the past four seasons.
Pleasant Grove, Utah, offensive lineman Bryce Walker wants to be a part of that turnaround.
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The gigantic 6-foot-8, 290-pound tackle gave the Aggies his verbal commitment Thursday.
"I went up to Logan and told them," Walker said. "I talked to offensive line coach Alex Gerke and he was happy. He called up coach Andersen and Dave Baldwin, their offensive coordinator. They all said, 'You just made my day.'"
Walker is Utah State's second commit for its 2010 class, joining Sandy (Utah) Alda linebacker Parker Hausknecht.
"I love their coaches and the college atmosphere there, and I like the way their coaches are changing things up there. I committed because I want to be a part of their uprising."
Though Walker considered a number of Pac 10 and Mountain West schools during his recruiting process, USU was his favorite from the start. The Aggies' coaching staff offered him at their junior day on May 30.
"At first I was shocked and just in awe," Walker said of the offer. "I gave it a few weeks and had a really good talk with coach Gerke when our team went to Utah State camp. We sat down and had a good talk, and that just really did it for me."
Walker's relationship with Gerke was one of his biggest reasons for picking USU.
"He's straight to the point and knows how to work hard," he said. "He gets stuff done and doesn't take crap from anybody. My family loves the coaches up there and we got a along really well with them."
Walker said getting the chance to play close to home was also an opportunity he couldn't pass up.
"I want to stay close to my family so I can have them around, go home whenever I need to and have them come up to my games," he said. "I'm pretty happy about that."
The Aggies' coaching staff has told Walker that he'll start off at right tackle once he gets on campus.
"They said they want me to redshirt or grayshirt, they don't know yet, and then we'll go from there," Walker said. "I just need to work on my footwork a lot and get bigger, faster and stronger. I think I can be a good Division I offensive tackle in the future."