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In college football, you hear a lot about the 5-star and 4-star athletes and the recruiting competition for their talents. In this era of NIL and the transfer portal, recruiting is constant for any star player. But this story is about the walk-ons, some of whom hit it big in the NFL
Some of the names may surprise you, or maybe you already know their story. We do not offer it as the ultimate list as we are sure that many of you have one or two stories to tell of famous walk-ons from the school that you root for.
The walk-on college football player has gained notoriety since the creation of the annual Burlsworth Trophy in 2010. Named after Brandon Burlsworth, it is presented to the top player each year who began his career as a walk-on. Generally speaking, that means the player has no scholarship but it doesn't mean that there isn't plan in place to be awarded a scholarship when one becomes available. Since only a set number of scholarships can be offered in any given year, players can sometimes afford to 'walk on' and play for the school of their choosing for a year, instead of settling for a scholarship at a school they did not want to attend.
'Walk-on' can also describe the character in the 1993 movie "Rudy. It's a true story of Daniel “Rudy” Ruettiger, who overcame multiple challenges to play football at Notre Dame (1974-1976) and usually didn't even dress-out. But in the final game of his final eligible season, coach Dan Devine put him in the game as a defensive end in the waning minutes vs. Georgia Tech. "Rudy" played 3 snaps - a kickoff, an incomplete pass, and on the third play (the game's final play), he sacked quarterback Rudy Allen. He then became the first Notre Dame in recorded history to be carried off the field by his teammates.
Surely, Ruettiger felt like he just hit the jackpot at Lucky Nugget Casino.
'Rudy' Ruettiger today, at age 75, works as a very effective motivational speaker as demonstrated In the 2017 documentary, "Rudy Ruettiger, The Walk On". In the documentary, "Rudy" takes a tour of the campus and introduces teammates while revealing stories that were not touched in the original "Rudy" film.
As for Burlsworth, a life story of unrivaled effort and determination led to him earning his scholarship, winning several collegiate accolades on and off the field, and ultimately being drafted as the 63rd over-all pick in the 1999 NFL Draft by the Indianapolis Colts. Sadly, the story came to a sudden and tragic end on April 28, 1999 when died instantly in a head-on automobile accident, eleven days after the draft.
2010 - Sean Bedford, Center, Georgia Tech
2011 - Austin Davis, QB, Southern Miss
2012 - Matt McGloin, QB, Penn State
2013 - Jared Abbrederis, WR, Wisconsin
2014 - Justin Hardy, WR, East Carolina
2015 - Baker Mayfield, QB, Oklahoma
2016 - Baker Mayfield, QB, Oklahoma
2017 - Luke Falk, QB, Washington State
2018 - Hunter Renfrow, WR, Clemson
2019 - Kenny Willekes, DE, Michigan State
2020 - Jimmy Morrissey, C, Pittsburgh
2021 - Grant Morgan, LB, Arkansas
2022 - Stetson Bennett, QB, Georgia
2023 - Cody Schrader, RB, Missouri
Baker Mayfield - He is the highest-drafted former walk-on in history and the only-time winner (2015, 2016) of the Burlsworth Trophy while at Oklahoma. In 2017, he took home the Heisman. Mayfield was the #6 over-all pick in the 2018 draft and the top pick of the Cleveland Browns. After four seasons, he was traded to the Carolina Panthers where he requested to be released 5 months later and went to the LA Rams. Two days after arriving in LA, he came off the bench to guide the team from a 16-3 deficit in the final 3:19 of the game. A 23-yard pass to Van Jefferson became the game-winning points with just 10 ticks left on the clock. He started the final four games of that season, but wound up 1-3 in those games. He became a free agent afterward and signed with Tampa Bay on March 16, 2023. Almost a year later, he re-signed with Tampa for 3 years for a contract totaling up to $115 million with incentives and $50 million guaranteed. Entering 2024, he has started 89 games and thrown for over 20,000 yards with 130 TD passes.
JJ Watt - After becoming the top draft pick of the Houston Texas (2011, No. 12 over-all), Watt embarked on aa12-year NFL career that ended with his announcement retirement after the 2022 season. He spent all but the final year (Arizona Cardinals) with the Houston Texans. The former walk-on defensive end at Wisconsin became one of the top defensive players in the history of the NFL. His college career actually started on a scholarship as tight end at Central Michigan, but he left to join Wisconsin as a walk-on the following year. He earned his scholarship later that year while on the scout team. His younger brother, linebacker TJ Watt, followed him at Wisconsin (2013-2018) and became the No. 30 over-all pick in the first round by Pittsburgh where he still plays. Ironically, TJ began his college career as a tight end, but after injury, switched to defense.
Will Montgomery - Will was a walk-on at Virginia Tech where he became one of the top centers in the nation. But he wasn't taken in the NFL Draft until the 7th round and though he didn't become one of the NFL's biggest stars, he did manage to stay employed in the NFL for nine years before injuries forced him out. He started 75 games, including every game and every snap of the 2013 season with the Washington Redskins. Much has been made of him losing 80 pounds after retirement because he just got sick of eating so much. But he's proof that there are many avenues for former college walk-ons to have an NFL career.