Two months ago, Walker Wallace ’25 was on the field at Gillette Stadium, cutting a piece of the lacrosse net that had caught 13 of Cornell’s goals during their NCAA championship win, hoisting the national title trophy above his head in celebration.
While that moment could have been the perfect ending to his collegiate athletic career, Wallace chose instead to turn the page — trading his lacrosse stick for football cleats. He’s now one of the newest additions to the University of Virginia’s football team.
“Playing football was something I was always thinking about for a long time,” Wallace said. “But I ultimately wanted to come play lacrosse at Cornell.”
Wallace committed to Cornell lacrosse during his junior year of high school. While he explained the Ivy League’s “perfect combination” of academics and athletics drew him to Cornell, he also had a deeper connection to the Red’s lacrosse program. Since childhood, he had been visiting Ithaca to watch the men’s lacrosse games — and to see his older brother, Fleet Wallace ’19, play defense for the Red.
“I grew up coming to watch his games in Ithaca and I got to know the coaching staff and all the players at Cornell,” Wallace said. “I fell in love with the team and the program, and I knew I wanted to follow him here.”
Though the two never got the chance to share the field as teammates, Wallace said Cornell’s NCAA championship win was a moment the brothers shared.
“To be able to end my lacrosse career with a national championship and for him to be in the stands meant a lot to me emotionally,” Wallace said.
Now, Wallace is entering UVA’s football locker room as a tight end — and carrying on a family tradition. His uncle, Charles McDaniel, played football at Virginia, and his mother, Elizabeth Wallace, competed in track and field for the Cavaliers.
“I grew up not far from UVA and would attend games with all my family members,” Wallace said. “I had a UVA football jersey in my bedroom, so being here to end my collegiate career feels surreal. It’s an opportunity I’m grateful for.”
The transition from football to lacrosse isn’t unusual — NFL hall of famer Jim Brown played lacrosse at Syracuse University and was a two-time All-American before his legendary career with the Cleveland Browns. Two-time Super Bowl champion Chris Hogan played lacrosse during his collegiate career at Penn State.
Wallace played football throughout high school at St. Christopher’s in Richmond, Virginia, helping lead his team to a runner-up finish in the Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association State Championship.
Now, he returns to the sport at the collegiate level as the tallest tight end in UVA’s locker room — and with a championship mindset having captained Cornell to its first lacrosse championship in roughly 50 years. Wallace is using his last year of NCAA eligibility to join the football team at UVA.
Wallace noted that while lacrosse requires more cardiovascular conditioning emphasizing that lacrosse conditioning “is harder than football’s conditioning.”
“Training is similar between the two sports,” Wallace said. “Agility and general movements in the weight room carry over, but football has a higher volume, more time in the weight room, heavier weights and the goal is really putting on size.”
Wallace also explained that there were some skills that “transferred” between the two sports including the hand-eye coordination and running condition. He said that lacrosse conditioning was “harder” than football’s since there is more of an emphasis on running around the field with no breaks.
Joining a larger locker room, Wallace said he is excited to contribute his unique perspective to the team — having already participated in Division I sports for two full seasons.
“The guys in the locker room have had a lot of respect for the season that we put together, even though it’s a different sport,” Wallace said. “I have an interesting perspective coming the championship season [and] now being in a new locker room where, in some ways, I feel like a freshman, but in other ways, I have experience. I captained a team to a national championship.”
Wallace reflected that he is excited to transition to a new sport, and take on another year of competing at the Division I level.
“I’ve enjoyed giving my two cents and learning how they do things [at UVA],” Wallace said. “It’s been humbling to start something new, but I’m excited for what’s ahead.”
Zeinab Faraj is a member of the class of 2028 in the College of Arts and Sciences. She is the features editor on the 143rd Editorial Board and was the assistant sports editor of the 143rd Editorial Board. You can reach her at zfaraj@cornellsun.com.
