His combined 26.5 sacks over the last two seasons made DeMarcus Walker one of college football's most prolific pass-rushers. It's also one of the reasons Walker is officially an NFL player.
The former Florida State defensive end was drafted in the second round Friday when he was taken by the Denver Broncos with the 51st pick overall. Walker becomes the second Seminole to be selected in this year's draft. He joins former FSU star Dalvin Cook, who was taken by the 10 spots earlier by Minnesota.
Walker's path to the NFL actually could have come a year earlier. He led FSU with 10.5 sacks, which was tied for 13th in the nation. Walker opted to return for his senior season and enjoyed one of the strongest individual campaigns in recent school history.
His 16 sacks ranked second nationally. Walker also tied Andre Wadsworth for the second-most sacks in a season in school history. In all, he finished with 28.5 career sacks, which is No. 3 all-time in FSU's history.
"I watched DeMarcus work extremely hard every single day in practice for four years to get to this moment," FSU coach Jimbo Fisher said. "He's a guy that loves football and who was a tremendous leader for us. He will go down as one the top defensive players in school history.
"He has a great opportunity to be successful in the NFL because of his ability to play multiple positions on the defensive line and his passion for the game."
Walker opened the 2016 season with a four-sack performance in FSU's season-opening win against Ole Miss. At 6-foot-4 and 280 pounds, Walker's ability to play off the edge and on the inside made him one of the game's most dangerous defensive linemen.
Walker's signature moment came in FSU's 20-19 win over in-state rival Miami at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. The Seminoles rallied from a 10-point halftime deficit to take a 20-13 lead with more than nine minutes left in the fourth quarter. The Hurricanes scored a touchdown with 1:38 left in the fourth but were denied the tie when Walker stopped the extra-point attempt in what would become known as "The Block at Hard Rock."
His legacy at FSU was cemented in the team's 31-13 win over bitter rival Florida to end the regular season. Walker finished with five tackles, two sacks and two tackles for loss in the win.
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