Speedy Walker
Florida Gators
PositionHalfback
Personal information
Born:(1906-12-12)December 12, 1906
Olivet, Michigan
Died:March 1, 2004(2004-03-01) (aged 97)
Mobile, Alabama
Weight133 lb (60 kg)
Career history
CollegeFlorida (1926–1927)
High schoolHillsborough
Career highlights and awards

Ion Sessions "Speedy" Walker (December 12, 1906 – March 1, 2004) was a college football and basketball player for the Florida Gators. He served in the Army in World War 2.[1]

Early years

Walker was born in Olivet, Michigan to Osa Walker and Lottie Sessions. By 1920 his family has moved to Oldsmar. Walker attended Hillsborough High School in Tampa, playing on the football team and basketball team with Dutch Stanley, where they were runner-up for the 1923 state football title, losing to Lakeland High School and Goof Bowyer.

University of Florida

He was a prominent triple threat halfback for coach Tom Sebring's Florida Gators football teams in 1926 and 1927.[2] The smallest member of the backfield,[3] Walker played as a quarterback in 1924 on the freshman team.[4][5][6] He backed up Bowyer at quarterback on the varsity.[7] He was also the senior captain of the basketball team during the 1927–28 season.[8][9][10] He was a forward on the basketball team.[11] He also lettered in baseball.[12] He was inducted into the University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame.

Coaching career

Following graduation, he coached the athletic teams at Bay County High School in Panama City.[13]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Clipped from the Tampa Tribune". The Tampa Tribune. October 6, 1945. p. 9.
  2. ^ "Rivalries and Series: Florida-Kentucky".
  3. ^ "6 Gators Will Close Careers At University". St. Petersburg Times. November 30, 1927.
  4. ^ "Baby 'Gators Hand Southern Beating". Miami Tribune. October 25, 1924. p. 5. Retrieved January 29, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  5. ^ Virgil M. Newton (October 16, 1924). "'Gator Sport Gossip". Miami Tribune. p. 7. Retrieved January 29, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Open access icon
  6. ^ Dillon Graham, Jr. (September 26, 1925). "Information About Gators". The Evening Independent.
  7. ^ "Gator Working For Big Game". St. Petersburg Times. November 3, 1927.
  8. ^ "Florida at Kentucky (January 3, 1927)".
  9. ^ "History of the Early Southern Conference Atlanta Basketball Tournament".
  10. ^ Florida Football 2014 Media Guide Archived September 3, 2014, at the Wayback Machine, University Athletic Association, Gainesville, Florida (2014).
  11. ^ "Florida Cage Prospects Not Bright At This Time". November 23, 1927.
  12. ^ "Great Teams and Eras: The 1920s".
  13. ^ "The Florida alligator".

External links

Florida Gators starting quarterbacks
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