Kenneth Walker III's power, elusiveness rank amongst best in recent Big Ten history
From the first time Kenneth Walker III donned a Michigan State uniform, in Week 1 against Northwestern, the Spartans knew they had something special.
However, even after that four-touchdown, 264-yard performance against the Wildcats, it would have been impossible to imagine the type of season that Walker was in for.
The Spartan tailback ended up winning the Doak Walker Award, given to the nation's top running back, and he did so with a combination of power and elusiveness that ranks amongst the best in modern Big Ten history.
According to Pro Football Focus, Walker forced more missed tackles during the 2021 season than some of the best tailbacks to play in the Big Ten over the past decade.
Some of the B1Ggest talent to ever play the game💨 pic.twitter.com/svU6jItPFh
— PFF College (@PFF_College) January 20, 2022
The names on the list above are staggering, and Walker stands above them all. Even more impressively, the former Michigan State tailback had the most forced missed tackles despite having the fewest rushing attempts amongst the five on that graphic.
Walker finished the 2021 season with 263 carries, meaning he forced a missed tackle on 33.8 percent of his total attempts. The next closest was Wisconsin's Jonathan Taylor at 27.2 percent (87 forced missed tackles on 320 attempts).
Penn State's Saquon Barkley had 72 forced missed tackles on 272 attempts (26.5 percent); Ohio State's JK Dobbins had 73 forced missed tackles on 301 attempts (24.3 percent); and Wisconsin's Melvin Gordon had 75 forced missed tackles on 343 attempts (21.9 percent).
It was a truly remarkable 2021 campaign for Walker, who now turns his attention to the NFL Draft. The former Spartan is being projected anywhere from a late first round pick to an early third round pick in various media outlet's mock drafts.
