To say Tennessee defensive end Chris Walker is looking forward to Saturday's matchup with the Ole Miss Rebels may be a bit of an understatement.

Having just played the school of his hometown, a 56-28 win over Memphis on Saturday, Walker will have played two schools in as many weeks that are essentially in his own backyard.

"Man, it's just been two games that I've been waiting to play since I got to Tennessee," Walker said. "When I got here as a Freshman I looked down the schedule and was like 'okay we get to play Memphis and Ole Miss back-to-back, so those are two games that I'm definitely going to be ready for.'"

He's really fired up this week. We've been practicing hard this week to go out and get the win for him [Coach Orgeron]Chris Walker, Tennessee defensive end

Coming out of high school, Walker was recruited as a four-star linebacker from Christian Brothers High School in Memphis. He had nothing bad to say about the schools that he chose not to pick on signing day in 2007, rather that it was a personal decision.

"Memphis, [had] a great coaching staff, and I had a great relationship with all the coaches. Ole Miss, obviously Coach [Orgeron] was down there, I had a great relationship with him. But, I kinda wanted to go away from home," he said.

A constant criticism of Tennessee's in-state high school football recruiting is simply the unfortunate geography - football-rich Knoxville roughly 400 miles away from talent-rich Memphis. Fortunately for the Vols, though, Walker chose the in-state football powerhouse.

This season has seen Walker become a fan and coach favorite alike. Early in the spring he was described by Coach Kiffin as "unblockable." The credit that he built up then has been backed by his play this fall. Walker leads the team with 5.5 sacks and is tied for the team lead with two interceptions.

"It's [these two 'almost home' games] in a good time because I'm in a position where I can make plays. I'm a leader on the team, so it's a good time for me," said Walker.

As the match up with Ole Miss has finally arrived on the schedule, his own position coach is the very man that had recruited him to play for the Rebels, defensive line coach Ed Orgeron.

"It's kinda funny, because you know, we're playing the school that he left and now he's here going to play against that school. A lot of us were recruited by him when he was at Ole Miss. It's going to be a fun time for us. He's really fired up this week. We've been practicing hard this week to go out and get the win for him."

Among the several things to be ready for in Saturday's match up (playing 56 miles away from his high school, playing for Coach "O") only one thing tops the list for the Vols: improving to 6-4 on the season and bowl eligible.       

Walker and the Vols front seven face a quarterback who leads the SEC in interceptions, and applying pressure on the quarterback will go a long way in making it a favorable afternoon for Tennessee.

"I'm going against a great tackle as all the tackles in the SEC are. I've had to watch a lot of film and work on moves that I know I can use against him that will be successful for me."

All Walker needs to do now is find success in a new 'home away from home': the Rebels backfield.