Art Walker

Arthur D. Walker, Jr. (November 24, 1933 – May 26, 1973) was an American football player. He was an All-American at the University of Michigan in 1954 and played seven seasons of professional football with the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League (CFL) from 1955 to 1961.

Early life Walker, an African-American who grew up four miles east of South Haven, Michigan, He was also a catcher on a local baseball team. Walker started nine games for the Wolverines and was named an All-Big Ten Conference player. As a 200-pound junior in 1953, However, his play against Tulane aggravated the injury, resulting in his missing the following game.

He was named to the 1954 All-Big Ten teams selected by the Associated Press and the United Press. He was also selected to play in the annual East-West Shrine Game, and selected by the Football Writers Association of America to the Look magazine All-American team in 1954. Michigan's line coach Jack Blott spoke at the banquet, and Walker was given a set of luggage. but opted instead to play in Canada. Walker told a reporter that he went to Canada because they offered more money than the NFL, and he had heard tales of salary troubles of Green Bay players. Walker played seven seasons of professional football as an offensive tackle and defensive guard for the Edmonton Eskimos of the Western Interprovincial Football Union from 1955 to 1961. Prior to the fourth season of Walker's tenure with the Eskimos, the WIFU agreed to a merger with the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union which resulted in the formation of the Canadian Football League.

His best season as a professional player was 1957, when he was named Edmonton's Most Valuable Player and was named to the Western Division all-star teams in two polls, one selected by the fans and the other by sportswriters and broadcasters.

Another writer described Walker's performance in the same game as follows:

Thursday night Walker, who seemed bent on some personal vendetta, simply refused to let Winnipeg run anything to the left side of the Edmonton line. Mostly it was sheer ability, but to make his performance even more galling to the Winnipeg offensive unit, every time he guessed right.

Walker's football career came to an end after the 1961 season. He missed most of the 1960 season with a damaged Achilles tendon and battled through pain during training camp in 1961. After making it through the first 15 games of the 1961 season without an injury, Walker's Achilles tendon injury returned in the third quarter of the season's final game. Following the game, Walker told a reporter that, as he hobbled to the sidelines, he knew his football career were over. He said:

I'd never go through another training camp like I did this year. Anyway what's the point of kidding anyone. I'd never be able to play as well again, even if I tried.

After retiring from football, Walker stated his intent to remain in Edmonton as his permanent home. He noted that he and his wife had good teaching jobs in Edmonton, and "the people in Edmonton have been wonderful to both my family and myself."

Death According to the book "The Canadian Pro Football Encyclopedia" by Tod Maher and Bob Gill (Maher Sports Media 2011), Walker died on May 26, 1973, in Marquette, Michigan, at age 39.