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EDGARD – Jalen Walker’s plans to attend Jackson State as a preferred walk-on changed this spring when he received an unexpected email from Millsaps College.

Walker will still be headed to Jackson, Mississippi, this fall. Only now, he has a long-awaited scholarship and a spot on the Millsaps Majors football team.

When he visited Millsaps on High School Day, Walker enjoyed the smaller size of the campus. With a friend from high school already enrolled, he is confident it’s a place he can call home for his collegiate career.

“I’m happy I got in,” Walker said. “Playing football will help me get out there and participate in things they have going on around campus. It will help me to be a better person in life.”

At West St. John, the 5’10”, 280-pound offensive right tackle dominated the football field and earned a first team all-district ranking for his senior season. His favorite high school football memory was the charged energy of West St. John’s 2017 state championship win.

Walker has also been an integral part of the Rams baseball team, as well as a faithful president of several campus organizations including Beta Club, 4-H, DECA and Skills USA Club. He is vice president of his senior class and has been on the A/B honor roll since eighth grade.

West St. John football coach Brandon Walters said Millsaps is getting a player who will work hard and pay the price in the weight room and in the classroom.

“They are getting a kid that will go to class, study and do everything that he can to remain a student athlete. That’s the type of person that he is,” Walters said.

Walker has come a long way since he was a middle schooler, and he’s soaked up a lot of football knowledge along the way.

“This is a unique opportunity for him. He may have the opportunity to also play baseball because he’s a great baseball player as well,” Walters said. “He’s a great kid, tough as nails. He plays the game of football with tenacity and a mean streak. I love that in him. I would mess with him all the time to get him to play that way. It’s a pleasure to see a player develop, mature and come along the way he certainly has.”

Walker is hopeful the fall football season will go forward as planned. While it’s still a waiting game, Walker is excited for the opportunity to grow.

“I want to see how far I can go,” he said.

Off the football field, Walker plans to study business management with a goal to eventually open his own company. His future career is not set in stone, however. Sports management is another consideration.

Walker is the son of Chantell and Robert Walker of Gramercy.