USC offensive lineman Aundrey Walker learned a lot as a
freshman.
Perhaps his most important lesson was "that you can't be 350 (pounds)
playing at the collegiate level."
With that in mind, Walker had to make a change. He's now a shell of
himself.
Literally.
The USC Trojans' 6-foot-6, 320-pound sophomore offensive lineman lost 63 pounds
and is now doing things he wasn't able to do before.
"He's completely different," USC head coach Lane Kiffin said.
"If you were to watch just when we go from stretch drills down to the
offensive line drills, he was always the last guy.
“I looked for him to be last (in a recent practice) and he
was the first guy down there actually. So, when you lose 60 pounds, you
move a little bit better too."
Walker, who weighed as much as 378 pounds, dropped all the way down to 315
pounds and is now comfortably playing at 320 pounds. He can thank his
diet for shedding the pounds. He eliminated carbs and the ever-tempting late
night snack, in favor of meats and vegetables.
He's a new man.
"I feel more alive," Walker said.
He's so alive that Kiffin has trusted him with his most prized possession – for
now. Walker has been inserted at left tackle the last two weeks, sitting in
the driver's seat to protect Matt Barkley's blindside.
With the departure of Matt Kalil, who entered the NFL Draft and is expected to
be a top-five pick later this month, redshirt junior Kevin Graf began the
spring on the left side as Kalil's potential successor.
The coaches then had a change of heart and Walker, who was on the right side at
the start of spring practice, moved to left tackle, sending Graf back to right
tackle where he started every game for the Trojans last season.
So far, Kiffin likes what he sees.
"He's a great athlete," Kiffin said of Walker. "For a guy that
size, he can really move well. He will flash at times to show you that he
can be a premiere player. So now he's just got a lot of stuff to put
together.
"We'll continue his development. He's got a lot of upside."
However, the head coach is not sure how permanent the change will be, unsure if
Walker and Graf may flip flop again. In the meantime, Walker is honored
to be on the left side.
"I'm protecting Matt Barkley's blind side" Walker said.
"It's an honor."
NOTES: Fifteen USC players will be going to Haiti next month to build at
least three houses and transport more than 2,000 pounds of supplies to schools
and orphanages. The players include Barkley, Devon Kennard, Hayes Pullard, and
Robert Woods.
"This is something I've talked about with Matt (Barkley) since I was a
freshman," said Kennard to usctrojans.com. "It's going to be a
blessing to those Haitian people, but this experience will be just as valuable
for us."
The Trojans will be in Haiti from May 14-19.
