Quick Chat: Travon Walker
September 16, 2021 | Football, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
Travon Walker is used to the Quick Chat format. When the Georgia defensive tackle, all 6-foot-5 and 275 pounds of him, sat down for our interview after practice Tuesday, it was our third Q&A in the past 53 weeks.
A junior from Thomaston, Ga., the small town of about 9,000 that has produced some legendary Bulldogs like Bill Hartman and Mike Cavan, Walker is smart, thoughtful and talented. He had one of the best games of his life in Georgia's season-opening win over Clemson with four tackles including a sack for a 9-yard loss.
Around his neck Tuesday was a chain with a pendant that reads "More Than Sports." During our wide-ranging Chat I asked him about that, the No. 2-ranked Bulldogs' super start on defense, and much more. Here's some of what he had to say:
Frierson: What is it like being a part of a defense that hasn't allowed a touchdown through the first two games? And how do you avoid letting that go to your head?
Walker: Just being a part of this defensive group, there's a lot of talent on this defense and it's just a pleasure to play around these guys. If you're not making the play, somebody else is making the play somewhere. You just get excited for your teammates.
We just try to stay levelheaded with the defense we're playing and keep improving. There's always room for improvement and we keep motivating each other to be a better player and a better individual for the team.
Frierson: Was the Clemson game your best game as a Georgia Bulldog?
Walker: You can kind of say it was one of my best games. It was one of the best teams we've played and I had an impact and I'm playing a lot more this season. You can say that but I feel like I still have a lot more to prove and a lot more to give to my teammates.
Frierson: Back when you were a freshman, how valuable was your experience being on the kickoff coverage team?
Walker: Coaches like special-teams guys and going to the NFL, that's what a lot of scouts and GMs look for, who can come in and make an impact on special teams. In the NFL everybody's good but if you're going to give it your all on special teams then of course you're going to give it your all when you're playing the position that you really love.
Frierson: A lot of your teammates say that Jordan Davis is the funniest guy on the team, which isn't a surprise. Is he funny on the field during games?
Walker: It's a different J.D. on the field [laughs]. When we're out there on the field he's still a funny guy, depending on where we're at in the game. We might joke around on the sideline but not too much.
Frierson: I notice your necklace says "More Than Sports" — what does that mean to you?
Walker: I'm a person that, I do more than sports. People on the outside might just see me as a football player but I'm a person that likes helping my community and I just like doing other things outside of playing sports. It's not all about sports with me.
Frierson: Has that feeling grown in you since you've been here in college and gotten to experience so many different things?
Walker: I've always been a guy that likes doing anything productive, that likes being productive. I love playing sports but I have other hobbies outside of sports that I always like doing, like hunting, I hunt sometimes, and I like to do lawn work just because I grew up doing lawn work and making money from it. There are a lot of things outside of sports that I like doing also.
Frierson: Plus you played the trombone for a number of years.
Walker: I did play the trombone.
Frierson: Have you picked that up since we last talked?
Walker: Nah, that's back home so I haven't seen that in a minute.
Frierson: Speaking of back home, Thomaston has produced a bunch of notable Bulldogs over the years — Mike Cavan, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Bill Hartman — and you're part of a long line of great Georgia Bulldogs. Does that mean something to you?
Walker: It does, especially with Coach Cavan. Coach Cavan is someone that people in the city love and he's someone that I look up to. He's a great guy, a great role model, and he's one of the greats from Thomaston, Ga.
Frierson: Your first name is actually Yury?
Walker: Yes, sir.
Frierson: Where did that come from?
Walker: It's also my dad's first name but I want to say that my auntie named me. I'm really not sure on that though.
Frierson: I've seen Russian's with the name Yuri.
Walker: That's my niece, my niece's name is Yuri.
Frierson: Have you always gone by Travon?
Walker: I've always gone by Travon. There's only a select few people back home that call me Yury.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
Staff Writer
Travon Walker is used to the Quick Chat format. When the Georgia defensive tackle, all 6-foot-5 and 275 pounds of him, sat down for our interview after practice Tuesday, it was our third Q&A in the past 53 weeks.
A junior from Thomaston, Ga., the small town of about 9,000 that has produced some legendary Bulldogs like Bill Hartman and Mike Cavan, Walker is smart, thoughtful and talented. He had one of the best games of his life in Georgia's season-opening win over Clemson with four tackles including a sack for a 9-yard loss.
Around his neck Tuesday was a chain with a pendant that reads "More Than Sports." During our wide-ranging Chat I asked him about that, the No. 2-ranked Bulldogs' super start on defense, and much more. Here's some of what he had to say:
Frierson: What is it like being a part of a defense that hasn't allowed a touchdown through the first two games? And how do you avoid letting that go to your head?
Walker: Just being a part of this defensive group, there's a lot of talent on this defense and it's just a pleasure to play around these guys. If you're not making the play, somebody else is making the play somewhere. You just get excited for your teammates.
We just try to stay levelheaded with the defense we're playing and keep improving. There's always room for improvement and we keep motivating each other to be a better player and a better individual for the team.
Frierson: Was the Clemson game your best game as a Georgia Bulldog?
Walker: You can kind of say it was one of my best games. It was one of the best teams we've played and I had an impact and I'm playing a lot more this season. You can say that but I feel like I still have a lot more to prove and a lot more to give to my teammates.
Frierson: Back when you were a freshman, how valuable was your experience being on the kickoff coverage team?
Walker: Coaches like special-teams guys and going to the NFL, that's what a lot of scouts and GMs look for, who can come in and make an impact on special teams. In the NFL everybody's good but if you're going to give it your all on special teams then of course you're going to give it your all when you're playing the position that you really love.
Frierson: A lot of your teammates say that Jordan Davis is the funniest guy on the team, which isn't a surprise. Is he funny on the field during games?
Walker: It's a different J.D. on the field [laughs]. When we're out there on the field he's still a funny guy, depending on where we're at in the game. We might joke around on the sideline but not too much.
Frierson: I notice your necklace says "More Than Sports" — what does that mean to you?
Walker: I'm a person that, I do more than sports. People on the outside might just see me as a football player but I'm a person that likes helping my community and I just like doing other things outside of playing sports. It's not all about sports with me.
Frierson: Has that feeling grown in you since you've been here in college and gotten to experience so many different things?
Walker: I've always been a guy that likes doing anything productive, that likes being productive. I love playing sports but I have other hobbies outside of sports that I always like doing, like hunting, I hunt sometimes, and I like to do lawn work just because I grew up doing lawn work and making money from it. There are a lot of things outside of sports that I like doing also.
Frierson: Plus you played the trombone for a number of years.
Walker: I did play the trombone.
Frierson: Have you picked that up since we last talked?
Walker: Nah, that's back home so I haven't seen that in a minute.
Frierson: Speaking of back home, Thomaston has produced a bunch of notable Bulldogs over the years — Mike Cavan, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Bill Hartman — and you're part of a long line of great Georgia Bulldogs. Does that mean something to you?
Walker: It does, especially with Coach Cavan. Coach Cavan is someone that people in the city love and he's someone that I look up to. He's a great guy, a great role model, and he's one of the greats from Thomaston, Ga.
Frierson: Your first name is actually Yury?
Walker: Yes, sir.
Frierson: Where did that come from?
Walker: It's also my dad's first name but I want to say that my auntie named me. I'm really not sure on that though.
Frierson: I've seen Russian's with the name Yuri.
Walker: That's my niece, my niece's name is Yuri.
Frierson: Have you always gone by Travon?
Walker: I've always gone by Travon. There's only a select few people back home that call me Yury.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
