By Kyle Coppola
Former Villages Basketball Star Sam Walters Commits to SMU
Sam Walters, a former standout at The Villages High School and one of Sumter County’s most talented recent basketball talents, has committed to SMU for the 2025-26 college basketball season.
The 6-foot-10 forward brings size, experience, and a versatile shooting touch to an SMU program on the rise under head coach Andy Enfield. Walters joins a Mustangs recruiting class that is currently ranked No. 17 nationally.
(Walters joins an SMU team that will be a force in 2025/26. This is Walter’s third different school in three years at the collegiate level. It’s his fourth in four years including The Villages. He has been a journeyman but SMU seems to be an exciting landing spot for the Junior. Photo Credit – SMU Athletics.)
Walters began his collegiate career at Alabama, where he appeared in 37 games as a freshman and helped the Crimson Tide reach the NCAA Final Four. He transferred to Michigan for his sophomore year and played in 23 games before a midseason injury sidelined him for the remainder of the season. Walters has averaged 5.4 points per game and shot an efficient 39.4% from beyond the arc over two seasons.
SMU is coming off a 24-11 campaign in Enfield’s first year at the helm. The Mustangs earned the No. 1 overall seed in the NIT and are expected to contend for a return to the NCAA Tournament next season.
(Walters celebrates after a Villages victory. Photo Credit – VHS Athletics.)
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Walters made a name for himself in high school with three standout seasons at The Villages along with a stint at powerhouse Montverde Academy. His combination of length, athleticism, and shooting touch made him one of the area’s top recruits and he has continued to refine his skills the past few years.
Now healthy and with a fresh opportunity ahead, Walters looks to make an impact as he continues his college career in Dallas. We wish him the best of luck!
Kyle Coppola was born in Newton, Massachusetts and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communications from Curry College in 2016. After traveling to Florida on a family vacation, he decided he could not get enough of the warm weather and made the move from snowy Massachusetts to central Florida 8 years ago.
For the last decade Kyle has gained valuable experience in social media content creation, marketing and sales, writing, video production, sports announcing and even broadcasting for local radio stations, such as FM 102.9 in The Villages and FM 91.5 in Massachusetts. Every year he volunteers at The Villages Charter High School as a play-by-play sports announcer for the football games as well as a public address announcer for the basketball games, including the annual Battle at The Villages Tournament.
Outside the office Kyle is a husband and father to two beautiful girls along with their cat. In his spare time he likes to spend time with his family, travel, play golf and swim. He is also a huge sports junkie and even bigger motorsports fan and loves to attend racing events when he can.
