Impact Analysis: Elijah Walker
Although we were not sure if Louisiana Tech would take a quarterback in 2017, they got a good one.
The Commitment:
Holding multiple offers from all over the country; including Memphis, Temple, and Colorado State, Amite’s Elijah Walker committed to Louisiana Tech after having recently received an offer from Bulldogs Head Coach Skip Holtz.
Walker seemed to be high on the Bulldogs and did not waste time committing. He had recently told BleedTechBlue.com that Tech was on the top of his list.
What It Means To The Class: It’s always good to get a quarterback in every class. You never know about future injuries or transfers and it’s good to have quality depth to work with in the program.
It seemed like after taking two quarterbacks in the 2016 class, Louisiana Tech may pass on a quarterback in 2017. However, 2017 will be wide open for the Bulldogs and the starting quarterback job. Walker is a great fit for Tech’s system and is too good to pass up.
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Impact at Louisiana Tech: Jon Randall Belton, Price Wilson, J’Mar Smith, and Jack Abraham will all be in the quarterback mix in 2017 and beyond for Holtz. With none of them having enough on-the-field experience to speak of, Holtz likely does not want to limit his options.
Considering Wilson came in with a different offensive coordinator and Belton has had multiple knee injuries to overcome; Louisiana Tech is not in position to turn away good prospects that can come in and compete for the job.
Walker has really good pocket presence, great timing, and is very accurate on his throws. Walker doesn’t bail on plays and tuck it and run, but he does have the ability to take off if needed. He shows great speed and vision on designed runs and would make a great trigger man in a spread offense. Walker has plenty of size at 6’2” and 200 pounds and still has a year left in high school to grow more.
Walker doesn’t show an overly explosive arm, but he does have good arm strength and excellent touch. Holtz likes to mix in the run with short, quick pass plays and then try to keep the defense off balance with a deep pass every once in a while. Walker certainly fits that mold.