Blue-chip running back Ronnie Walker updates recruitment, includes Virginia Cavaliers football in top 10

Good news on the recruiting front has continued for the Virginia Cavaliers football program and its fans.

After UVA landed a commitment from offensive-tackle-to-be Bobby Haskins on Friday night, Hopewell running back Ronnie Walker announced that the Hoos remain in the running for his commitment.

Walker is a consensus-top 10 prospect in the Commonwealth for the class of 2018. He’s rated 4 stars by 247, ESPN, and Scout, with Rivals rating him a high 3-star. Each service includes him among the top handful of running backs in the country, as well: as high as 10th for Scout, with ESPN the low at 22.

Just about every school in his top 10 poses a threat of some sort. Some can boast more plentiful recent success (Michigan State, UNC, Blacksburg Cow College), some can match Virginia’s academic prowess (Duke, Northwestern), and others can make a similar pitch about getting in on the ground floor of a rebuilding program (Purdue and new coach Jeff Brohm stand out the most here).

This is as close to a must-land prospect as there is for Coach Mendenhall and the staff in the McCue Center. Walker has been on Grounds more than some fourth-years, and Virginia has reportedly been the leader for a while. A commitment for UVA would both land a phenomenal talent and signal that the new staff has acclimated to recruiting in the Commonwealth. But missing out would make the third such prospect—in-state blue chip, with UVA in the lead—to slip through Virginia’s fingers, after Mekhi Becton went to Louisville and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah headed to Notre Dame.

Hopefully on-field success will come as early as this fall in Charlottesville and Walker will see Virginia as a total-package destination.