Auburn turned Baylor QB Walker White said it was an 'automatic yes' when Bears came calling
Baylor QB Walker White is now in Waco, but he didn't start his college football journey with the Bears. While Baylor was in his final three, the Little Rock (AR) native picked to start his college journey at Auburn. The 6-foot-3 gunslinger was ranked as the No. 107 prospect in the country and the No. 8 QB.
But things didn't work out with the Tigers as he had hoped. After one season with Auburn, White entered the transfer portal and found his way to Baylor. Now that he's in Waco, White will sit behind one of the best QBs in college football -- Sawyer Robertson. But White is willing to wait his turn, and he told reporters on Thursday that when Baylor came calling, it was an automatic yes.
"I mean, the biggest thing for me was out of high school -- if you all remember, Baylor was in my top three," White recalled. "And so when I decided to get in the transfer portal and Baylor called, I mean, it was an automatic -- almost yes for me. Obviously, I still had to hear from other coaches, but I knew I loved Coach Aranda.
"I had to do some of my own research of Jake Spavital and what it would be like playing for him, and I knew a guy that he coached for at Texas State. So just wanted to do my own research for that. And kind of once I got some word on Coach Spav, I was just, like, fired up to come here. Working with Brett Holcomb, who also recruited me out of high school, and Texas football.
"It doesn't get better than this, and it's just great football, and it's a good league, and I wanted to play in it, and I was fired up to be here."
White, who was a highly-rated recruit, said he doesn't mind sitting behind and learning from Robertson. It will be a similar situation for White in 2025 as it was in 2024. When White went to Auburn as a true freshman, he sat behind veteran Peyton Thorne.
"Yeah, Sawyer, I mean, similar situation for me last year," said White. "I was playing under Peyton Thorne, and for me, like, I'm a huge development guy. I want to learn. I want to get better.
"I asked those guys questions, and Peyton really took me under his wing last year, and I really wanted to be around him all the time. Learn from what he had to teach, and same thing when I got here for Sawyer. I mean, I was fired up. Fifth-year guy, started at Mississippi State, and he's been through so many different OCs and offenses, so he knows ball.
"I've talked with him just about, like, how he watches film and what he looks for, and then also just we've talked a ton on footwork, and he's helped me out a lot on that within the game. Also just mentally and how he's approached the game because he didn't have the easiest way to becoming a starter, but he made it, and he pushed through, and so I've learned a lot from himi n that aspect of the game, so it's been awesome. Sawyer's been great, and he's just a real role model for me and loves the Lord, and as do I, so I really just look at him as a leader and a guy that I want to be like."
QB Walker White talking about being recruited out of HS by Aranda and choosing the Bears out of the portal after leaving Auburn pic.twitter.com/RpUqKWfpsa
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