North Carolina wide receiver Tez Walker caught his first touchdown as a member of the Tar Heels on Saturday. Walker, who was finally ruled eligible on Oct. 5 following a lengthy back-and-forth with the NCAA, gave No. 12 UNC an early 7-0 lead against No. 25 Miami.
Facing a long third-and-goal, quarterback Drake Maye dropped back to pass from Miami’s 18-yard line as Walker put a nice inside move on the corner in man coverage. Walker got a step on the defender and snagged Maye’s pass in the end zone. The full play can be seen below:
Walker transferred to North Carolina from Kent State in the offseason but was denied immediate eligibility by the NCAA due to the new two-time transfer rule. Walker missed the first four games of the season but was deemed eligible midseason after the NCAA cited “new information” in his case. He made his debut in the Tar Heels’ Week 6 game vs. Syracuse and had six catches for 43 yards.
Walker initially signed with East Tennessee State out of high school but got dropped after suffering a knee injury. He took a gap year and then transferred to NC Central, but never got to play after the season was canceled due to COVID-19. He then transferred to Kent State, where he emerged as a 2022 All-MAC selection after logging 921 yards receiving and 11 touchdowns.