I started a conversation with Notre Dame safety Luke Talich, a former walk-on with the Irish, about concerns over impending roster limits coming to college football. I thought what he said was important and you'd want to hear his voice on the matter.
There are concerns that future roster limits may lead to fewer walk-on opportunities in college football. What’s your perspective is on that? Would that be a bad thing for college football?
“I think it’s tragic, honestly. As a walk-on myself, if I was two years younger, I would never have that opportunity. I don’t know what the system is. I don’t know how it has to work. But there’s gotta be some system for walk-ons, I believe. What’s free agency in the NFL? It’s kinda walking on. I don’t think you should just limit or kill those opportunities for all those kids. You think about this new settlement that’s coming, the amount of kids that are gonna be looking for some place to go, and there’s probably not gonna be that many places. It’s gonna be hard. I honestly do think it’s not good. I don’t know why they’re doing it, technically. I guess it has to do with NIL. For a lot of people in America, I think it’s never been about money. Our parents didn’t grow up making money in college. You made zero dollars in college, and that was fine. I don’t know what the solution is, but I don’t think it's a good thing.”
You’re probably close with some of the walk-ons here. Are there guys worried about having a spot moving forward?
“Of course. They gotta do their thing. They gotta fend for themselves. They gotta look out for their well-being. They gotta have a plan if they do get cut, because they don’t know. And I don’t know how that’s gonna be communicated or whatever. They gotta have a plan for themselves as well, and they gotta look out for themselves. Obviously, yeah, I’ve made a lot of relationships with [walk-ons]. Jordan [Faison] was one of the only guys I knew, because we were walk-ons. He’s grown to be one of my best friends, because we were walk-ons and jumped on some Irish podcast together way back when we were getting not even recruited but we were coming here committed. I don’t know what the solution is. They gotta fend for themselves as well.”
Do you think it has the biggest impact on guys who come from small schools like yourself?
“For sure. I feel like I kinda represent kids like that who come from small communities, want to go big and don’t really ever have those opportunities. Because the truth is you’re never gonna get recruited from Notre Dame in Cody, Wyoming. Ever. I had to come here in order to get a chance. So, I came to a camp. There’s so many kids that have that same mentality. I think settlement or whatever — I don’t even know the logistics of it — it could definitely hurt kids like that. I just think of myself. If I was two years younger, I would never have been able to ever have a chance here. Why would they give a kid from Wyoming who doesn’t play any competition a scholarship? They’re not going to, because they don’t know enough. It is difficult for kids who would grow up in small towns. I don’t know the solution.”
There are concerns that future roster limits may lead to fewer walk-on opportunities in college football. What’s your perspective is on that? Would that be a bad thing for college football?
“I think it’s tragic, honestly. As a walk-on myself, if I was two years younger, I would never have that opportunity. I don’t know what the system is. I don’t know how it has to work. But there’s gotta be some system for walk-ons, I believe. What’s free agency in the NFL? It’s kinda walking on. I don’t think you should just limit or kill those opportunities for all those kids. You think about this new settlement that’s coming, the amount of kids that are gonna be looking for some place to go, and there’s probably not gonna be that many places. It’s gonna be hard. I honestly do think it’s not good. I don’t know why they’re doing it, technically. I guess it has to do with NIL. For a lot of people in America, I think it’s never been about money. Our parents didn’t grow up making money in college. You made zero dollars in college, and that was fine. I don’t know what the solution is, but I don’t think it's a good thing.”
You’re probably close with some of the walk-ons here. Are there guys worried about having a spot moving forward?
“Of course. They gotta do their thing. They gotta fend for themselves. They gotta look out for their well-being. They gotta have a plan if they do get cut, because they don’t know. And I don’t know how that’s gonna be communicated or whatever. They gotta have a plan for themselves as well, and they gotta look out for themselves. Obviously, yeah, I’ve made a lot of relationships with [walk-ons]. Jordan [Faison] was one of the only guys I knew, because we were walk-ons. He’s grown to be one of my best friends, because we were walk-ons and jumped on some Irish podcast together way back when we were getting not even recruited but we were coming here committed. I don’t know what the solution is. They gotta fend for themselves as well.”
Do you think it has the biggest impact on guys who come from small schools like yourself?
“For sure. I feel like I kinda represent kids like that who come from small communities, want to go big and don’t really ever have those opportunities. Because the truth is you’re never gonna get recruited from Notre Dame in Cody, Wyoming. Ever. I had to come here in order to get a chance. So, I came to a camp. There’s so many kids that have that same mentality. I think settlement or whatever — I don’t even know the logistics of it — it could definitely hurt kids like that. I just think of myself. If I was two years younger, I would never have been able to ever have a chance here. Why would they give a kid from Wyoming who doesn’t play any competition a scholarship? They’re not going to, because they don’t know enough. It is difficult for kids who would grow up in small towns. I don’t know the solution.”
