Earl Walker
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Sport:
Wrestling |
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Year
Graduated: 1995 |
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Year
Inducted: 2002 |
Carl Adams has been a wrestling coach for nearly 30 years.
He was at Iowa State for six years and the University of Rhode
Island for two years before he came to rebuild the Boston
University wrestling program 21 years ago. Over the years,
he has coached hundreds of wrestlers. Thus, when he adds "est"
to a wrestler, you pay attention.
"Earl Walker is the classiest kid I have ever coached,"
the highly respected Adams recently said of this year's inductee.
"He is a true gentleman in every sense of the word. You
would want your son to grow up like Earl Walker or have your
daughter marry someone like Earl.
"He is a shining example of what a student-athlete should
be," continued the coach. "Academically, he was
a great student, and currently he is working toward his PhD
in sport psychology.
"Athletically, his record shows he was the best wrestler
we ever had here," concluded Adams, who also coached
current B.U. Hall of Famer Tod Giles. "He was a hard
worker and very focused on what needed to be done."
A national champion in high school, Earl originally matriculated
at Brown University but transferred to B.U. after his freshman
year.
During the next three years, he amassed an amazing 86-12-2
record for an .870 winning percentage. He also advanced to
the NCAA Tournament each of his three seasons as a Terrier.
His first trip came in 1993, when, as a sophomore, he defeated
the number-one seed and went on to finish in the top 12 in
the nation at 158 pounds, as he compiled a 26-5 record.
His junior year of 1994, he earned All-American status as
he finished third in the NCAAs, marking the highest finish
ever by a B.U. wrestler. He was 13-0 in dual match competition,
37-3 in all matches, and won the Mickey Cochrane Award as
the University's Outstanding Male Athlete.
He capped off his career with a 23-4-2 record as a senior.
During the course of the season, he was ranked as high as
number one in the nation at 158 pounds. He was team captain,
team MVP, and featured as a Face In The Crowd in Sport Illustrated.
