| Walter Nolen | |
| School: | Ole Miss Rebels |
| Currentnumber: | 2 |
| Currentposition: | Defensive tackle |
| Class: | Sophomore |
| Birth Date: | 14 October 2003 |
| Birth Place: | Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Heightft: | 6 |
| Heightin: | 4 |
| Weight: | 290 |
| Highschool: | Powell (TN) |
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| Highlights: |
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| Espn: | 4685503 |
Walter Nolen (born October 14, 2003) is an American football defensive tackle for the Ole Miss Rebels. He was rated by ESPN and USA Today as the No. 1 recruit in the 2022 college football recruiting class.
Nolen played high school football at three different schools: Olive Branch High School in Olive Branch, Mississippi, as a freshman and sophomore; Saint Benedict at Auburndale in Memphis as a junior; and Powell High School in Powell, Tennessee, as a senior. He also enrolled for a time at IMG Academy but did not play there.[1] His coach at Powell, Matt Lowe, described him as "a young man who has been blessed with size, speed and athleticism."[2]
In his senior year at Powell, he had 93 tackles, 33 tackles for loss, 27 quarterback hurries, and 17 sacks.[3] He was rated by ESPN as the No. 1 football recruit in the 2022 recruiting class.[4] He was ranked No. 2 by Rivals.com and 247Sports, behind Travis Hunter.[3] [5]
After his senior year, he was invited to play in the Under Armour All-America Game.[3] In July 2022, he was named Defensive Football Player of the Year by USA Today. He was also rated by USA Today as the country's No. 1 recruit for 2022.[6]
Nolen received offers from numerous schools and narrowed his final five to Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, and Tennessee.[1] In November 2021, Nolen committed to play college football for Texas A&M.<ref>News: No. 1 Defensive Recruit Walter Nolen Commits to Texas A&M Football. Sport Illustrated. November 6, 2021. He later paid an official visit to Tennessee, raising speculation that his commitment was uncertain. He then signed his letter of intent with Texas A&M in December 2021.[7] [8] He was part of a recruiting class at Texas A&M that was rated as the best in the history of recruiting rankings.[9]
On December 3, 2023, Nolen announced his intentions to transfer from Texas A&M.<ref>News: Texas A&M DL Walter Nolen plans to enter the transfer portal . SB Nation . December 3, 2023 .
On December 24, 2023, Nolen announced his commitment to Ole Miss and signed his national letter of intent.[10]