Brit Chad Walrond will be on the field for the Stuttgart defense in the upcoming 2024 season. Walrond, who was born in Bridgetown (Barbados), is joining the Surge from the Cologne Centurions, where he played the past two seasons in 2022 and 2023. In 15 games for the Centurions, the British safety made a total of 69 tackles, including 7 tackles for loss. He also made one interception. Due to his speed, Walrond was also used as a returner in the special teams. 

From NFL International Combine to the ELF

During his studies at the University of Hertfordshire in Great Britain, Walrond started playing American football in 2017. For three years, he played for the university team, the Hertfordshire Hurricanes. In 2019, he was selected for the BUCS (British Universities and Colleges Sport) All Star team. He quickly came to the attention of the London Blitz, so that he spent the 2018 and 2019 seasons for them in the highest British football league, the Premier Division. In 2021, Walrond moved to the Allgäu Comets in the GFL. With the Comets in 9 games, including 24 tackles and a forced fumble for the defense, a receiving touchdown for the offense and a 53-yard kick return touchdown on special teams. Walrond was then invited to the NFL International Combine 2021, later beginning his career in the ELF with the Istanbul Rams, for whom he played the first two games of the regular season before joining the Cologne Centurions. 

Walrond: "My mission is very simple"

The 24-year-old, who also plays for the British national team, is happy to join the Surge: "I would first like to thank God for creating this amazing opportunity at this point in my career. It became apparent very quickly, after a long conversation with coach Newman, that this is where I wanted to be and that the love was reciprocated. My mission is very simple, a championship ring. I will do whatever I have to, on and off the field, to accomplish that goal with my new family."