NEWS NOW: Amorion Walker, a defensive back for Michigan, logs into the NCAA Transfer Portal

While the rest of the country endured its Transfer Portal losses in December, the Michigan football team’s players largely stayed locked in on trying to help the Wolverines capture a national title. And now that Michigan has done that, players such as Jake Thaw and Darrius Clemons have opted to hit the Transfer Portal to spend next season at another program.

Add redshirt freshman cornerback Amorion Walker to that list, as the 6-foot-3, 180-pounder hit the portal Thursday evening. Though entering the portal does not mean a player can’t return to their current program, it suggests that a player is at least strongly looking to spend the next season elsewhere.

Walker, projected by Michigan this spring to be a breakout player this fall, dealt with injuries and struggled to make a dent in the Wolverines’ cornerback room. He played in six of Michigan’s 15 games, totaling 66 snaps, all on defense. He allowed three receptions on six targets in coverage, with one pass breakup. He finished with three tackles, and did not play in either of Michigan’s College Football Playoff games.

In all, he played the seventh-most snaps among Michigan cornerbacks this season, including falling behind fellow 6-foot-3 cornerback and true freshman DJ Waller Jr.

After Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh touted Walker’s shiftiness in February — his 6.10-second 3-cone drill would be faster than any prior time in NFL Combine history — as he switched from wide receiver to cornerback, his 2023 was muddied by injuries and being buried on the depth chart. Still, speaking with 247Sports last week, he seemed to be taking it in stride.

“It’s been good for me,” Walker told The Michigan Insider. “It’s been building me mentally in a great place. Everybody goes through a little something and adversity, so I’ve been working to get back to where I need to go. 

“It definitely helps a whole lot. When I got injured, it allowed to me to sit down and really take in the parts of the game all in at once. That was really good for me, too. I feel like I’m a way smarter football player than I was at the beginning of the year.”