DeMarcus Walker's family lives 10 minutes outside Jacksonville, which was hit by Hurricane Matthew last week.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — DeMarcus Walker's blocked extra point for 14th-ranked Florida State in last Saturday's win over No. 16 Miami capped an emotional couple days.
On Monday, the senior defensive end said seeing Hurricane Matthew hit the Jacksonville area late last week took a toll — Walker's family lives 10 minutes from Jacksonville Beach."Seeing the roads flooded, the pier getting knocked down, a picture of a shark swimming, it was hard," Walker said. "I'm trying to call my family and they weren't picking up. I got a text from my mom that she had to go across to my aunt's. It was heartbreaking.
"There were times throughout the game I was sidetracked, but I played a decent game and got a 'W.'"
Walker said no one in his family was hurt during the hurricane and that they were good following the storm.
Walker ended up having two tackles in the game, but it was his block of Michael Badgley's extra point with 1:38 remaining that ended up being the difference in the Seminoles' 20-19 win . Florida State fans have already nicknamed it 'The Block at The Rock' since the game was at Hard Rock Stadium. It's the latest among many memorable plays from the rivalry.
Walker has a knack for coming up with blocks in rivalry games. He also blocked a field goal in last year's game against Florida.
The block against Miami also marked the first time since 1954 that Florida State has blocked PATs in consecutive games.
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"I didn't know it was that big until today during warmup when people came up and said I was a part of history with 'The Block at The Rock'. I thought it wasn't a big deal. I saw everyone saying it on social media," Walker said. "I needed to make a play. I didn't want to go to overtime because I was too tired."
Going into Saturday's game against Wake Forest, Walker is tied for second in the Atlantic Coast Conference in sacks (6 1/2) while his 26 tackles are second on the team.
DeMarcus Walker dedicated his performance tonight to his hometown of Jacksonville. Said he was heartbroken to see flood and destruction.
— Tim Linafelt / FSU (@Tim_Linafelt) October 9, 2016
"Hopefully the win was a step in the right direction," he said. "We have a bye week coming up next week so we're grinding it out and we can get healthy next week."
This article was written by Joe Reedy from The Associated Press and was legally licensed through the NewsCred publisher network.
