The walk-on who never walked out: How Silas Walters went from zero college offers to becoming Miami’s team captain

In the era of the transfer portal and Name, Image and Likeness (NIL), college football teams rely on recruiting current players from other programs by promising lucrative contracts, more than finding talent they didn’t know was right in front of them.

Since these practices have become so common, the concept of walk-on players – players that never received a scholarship but made the team through tryouts – has fizzled out.

But in the case of redshirt senior safety Silas Walters, his journey took him from being a low priority walk-on to team captain for the Miami University RedHawks football team.

Growing up less than an hour from Miami, Walters attended RedHawks games in the early 2010s with his family, including his uncle who lived in Oxford.

“I have some history of watching the RedHawks,” Walters said. “It’s part of the reason I came here.”

At Lakota West High School, Walters helped with the team’s regional final run in 2020, where it fell to St. Xavier during his senior year.

Although Walters didn’t receive a collegiate scholarship straight away, he knew that his calling was football. When he arrived at Miami’s campus his first year, he showed his determination to prove himself by trying out for the team as a walk-on.

Through his first year, Walters had people he looked up to in the safety room that were crucial to his development into the player he is now.

“Some of the safeties that came before me when I first got here – Sterling Weatherford, Mike Brown – were [guys] I really looked up to,” Walters said. “And in 2022-23, Michael Dowell was a big wise guy and had a bunch of experience. So those guys really helped develop me a lot as a player.”

As a walk-on, Walters saw limited playing time and spent more time on the sidelines than on the field from 2021-22. He knew that to earn playing time, he would need to develop himself physically and mentally in his free time.

Head coach Chuck Martin has seen Walters’ entire transformation as a RedHawk. He got his first break on special teams before moving to backup safety. At each new stage, he said Walters would continue to show that he’s willing to go above and beyond to improve himself and the team as a whole.

“When he got here, he was a walk-on,” Martin said. “He would go straight to the scout team and give it his all. Then, [he would] go to special teams and lead the country in special team tackles in one year. After getting noticed by all of the coaches and teammates, he’ll go to backup safety, then backup nickel. Next thing you know, he’s a starter. Shortly after that, he’s team captain.”

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At the 2023 spring showcase, Walters was called to the middle of the field for the opening coin toss. Martin told him he had a choice: he could decide whether his team would receive or kick, or he could decide to accept a scholarship position on the team.

From that point on, Walters has elevated his game and became a cornerstone of Miami football.

“When I first got here, it was sort of trying to make a name for yourself and get on the coach’s radar,” Walters said. “You’re trying to get a scholarship. Now, in my last year, it’s different. I know I’m playing, so the expectation keeps getting higher for me.”

Now being on scholarship, Walter’s role on the team has changed. He is looked at as a leader and an expected playmaker: a night-and-day difference from when he first tried out his freshman year.

With these expectations, Walters has shined as a starter and proven his team captain status. Going into conference play this season, he matches redshirt senior linebacker Corban Hondru with two interceptions to lead the roster and ranks third in tackles (25).

He also picked up a sack as a safety against Rutgers University and had one of the RedHawks’ biggest plays of the year when he caught an interception in the endzone against the University of Wisconsin.

“It was fourth down, and they got in a tight formation,” Walters said. “I read my key receiver as he came across the field. The quarterback made a poor throw, but I was in position and was able to capitalize off his mistake.”

With this most likely being Walters’ last season as a RedHawk, Martin said Walter’s future is bright.

“I know he wants to have a crack at the NFL,” Martin said. “He has put himself in that position and wants to get an opportunity. He’s been dreaming of playing on Sundays, and I know that’s a huge goal of his. But to me, whatever he chooses to do, he’ll be widely successful. He’ll be an asset to anyone who ends up being part of his life.”

The importance of walk-ons is diminishing in the new era of college football. However, players like Walters show that those who had zero offers out of high school can still become a vital cog in any football team.

mcdona97@miamioh.edu