After his brief departure from the Hawk’s football program, Coach Lewis Walker has returned for the 2024 season as a first-time defensive coordinator. Walker was with the team from 2017 to 2021 before deciding to coach at North Dakota State University (NDSU), which he described as a national powerhouse program.
Still youthful in his coaching career, Walker left the Hawks because he felt there was an opportunity for him to acquire more skills. Getting to learn from different people, and observe the culture of a powerhouse program, he feels, has led him to grow both professionally and personally. While with NDSU, Walker had the opportunity to make it to the playoffs and compete for the NCAA Division IAA national championship.
Head coach, Kevin Callahan said, “It was a no-brainer to bring him back. His growth as a football coach has been tremendous since the time he was previously with us.” He continued, “Those two years he spent at North Dakota State really made him a lot more rounded as a football coach as he was exposed to another system of doing things on defense.”
Before Walker left Monmouth’s program after his first stint, Coach Callahan described him as a valuable asset to the coaching staff. As a veteran coach and being with the team from 2017 to 2021, Walker is familiar with Monmouth’s program, the coaching staff, and the community. This made his transition back to the Hawks smooth. Callahan recalled the day he announced Coach Lewis’ return to the team, and explained that the players were excited about it.
One of the players in that room was Sheku Tonkara, a fifth-year defensive lineman. He expressed enthusiasm about Walker returning to the Hawks, as having a familiar coach in the space was exciting for him. Tonkara emphasized that having a younger coach in the program creates a more relatable environment and motivates players to push themselves harder. He described Walker’s energy as “unmatched and not something you see in every coach.”
Walker describes himself as a “high-energy active person.” He elaborated on this by explaining, “The energy of the team as a whole is contagious whether they be good or bad, and if we are out there flat where is that energy going to come from when the spark is needed?” Coach Callahan said he is certain that Walker’s energy translates onto the field.
Walker values relationships deeply. Coach Callahan said, “Lewis is a relationships person, he has tremendous relationships with our coaches, players, and everyone here at the University.” These relationships have earned him trust, allowing players to have confidence in his plans because they believe he has their best interests at heart.
Walker feels that one of his greatest accomplishments of the season so far has been the team’s win at Florida International University. This was a big deal for the history of Monmouth’s football program as this win was Monmouth’s first ever win against an NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision opponent. Walker said he is “Continuously inspired to reward Coach Callahan”, and see his head coach’s success along with his legacy continue.
As the defensive coordinator, Walker is responsible for implementing the entire defensive plan. Walker has reworked a new system for the defensive side of the team. Coach Callahan believes that coaching at NDSU has allowed Walker to introduce new ideas and techniques to the Hawks.
According to Walker, the primary challenge facing the Hawks’ defense lies in their ability to tackle. Walker explained, there are days when they excel at this and other days when they struggle. Walker explained this is an element of the game the Hawks defense has been working on over the past few months, focusing on technique and fundamentals every day. Coach Callahan said he is seeing, “incremental progress throughout the new defensive scheme and although it is still a work in progress, it is headed in the right direction.” Callahan believes the “culmination of all of his experiences has led Walker to come up with an effective plan.”
Walker is looking forward to, “having the opportunity to be a first time coordinator, putting together a system and staff that not only I believe in or my staff believes in, but what our players can complete and execute.”
