| When Florida State was set to open the 2001 season, Javon Walker
wasn’t listed as the Seminoles’ top receiver on the depth chart. By
season’s end, he was averaging better than 20 yards per catch and ended his college
career as the MVP of the Gator Bowl. Walker is listed as the sixth-best receiver available
by Pro Football Weekly’s Joel Buchsbaum. Others rate the 6-3, 210-pounder as high as
third. Walker isn’t concerned with how the depth chart reads today, but where he
stands among this WR class two or three years down the road. Q: What will the team
that drafts Javon Walker get?
A: They are going to get an impact player. I believe that at any point and time I can
change the momentum. I work hard. I put everything there is into being the best receiver
out there.
Q: What was your best 40 time?
A: A 4.37 at Florida State two years ago.
Q: Who are the receivers you look up to?
A: Pretty much Jerry Rice. As I got older, I would watch and try to put my skills in
other people, put myself in their bodies — like Terrell Owens, a lot of the bigger
receivers. I’ve watched them a lot to see how they use their body and what their
technique is.
Q: Do you consider yourself a student of the game?
A: I’m always willing to learn. I always follow people who take the time to do the
things you have to do to make yourself better.
Q: What is the worst injury you have ever had?
A: An ankle sprain. It doesn’t sound serious, but it is frustrating. An ankle
sprain for a defensive tackle means you play next week. But as a receiver, you plant and
cut — that is all on your ankle. A receiver wouldn’t be at his best the next
week with a bad ankle.
Q: Did any cornerbacks give you problems last year at Florida State?
A: It was a challenge coming in with a freshman quarterback but we made it as a team.
We counted on each other as teammates and pulled together.
Q: A lot of teams will ask what your best game tape is. What is it?
A: The Gator Bowl against Virginia Tech. Like I said, I’m a team player. I
didn’t get any catches until the fourth quarter, but it turned into four catches for
195 yards and I ended up being Gator Bowl MVP.
Q: What separates you from these other receivers?
A: Well, we wouldn’t be here if we didn’t think we had the ability. I’m
going to let these teams make a hard decision between me and some of these other guys.
There are a lot of different teams and coaches, and everyone is looking for something
different.
Q: How much does the draft weigh on your mind?
A: I’m a competitor. I’ve wanted to be on the stage with all these other
receivers and try to stand out. I want to be the best there is.
Q: Can you average 21 yards a game like you did last season at Florida State?
A: I think I can. It is going to take me getting into a system and doing what the
offensive coordinator wants, what the receivers coach wants, and take my game to another
level. I think I can do that.
Q: How big of a jump do you think it is from college to pro?
A: It’s going to be a game of wisdom. Everybody pretty much has the same talent,
but you can’t beat wisdom. It is going to be more film watching than I’ve ever
done in my lifetime and taking one technique that you used in college and then expanding
your repertoire to make yourself successful at that level.
Q: Why do you think Peter Warrick hasn’t been able to take his game to the next
level?
A: I really can’t speak for Peter Warrick. I know it depends on dedication. If you
have a great work ethic like Jerry Rice, you take your game to any level. I don’t
know what goes through (Warrick’s) mind. I know what goes through Javon Walker’s
mind as he goes to the next level and it is going to be hard work, dedication and doing
whatever he can to be the best.
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