Herschel Walker: Donald Trump is 'my frontrunner' for president

Josh Peter | USA TODAY Sports

Donald Trump is in position to win the endorsement of a former Heisman Trophy winner who said he knows it could be an unpopular move.

Herschel Walker, the former running back who played for the New Jersey Generals of the now-defunct USFL when Trump owned the team, said he likes what he has seen from Trump during the billionaire's polarizing presidential campaign.

"There's not a doubt in my mind right now he is my frontrunner," Walker told USA TODAY Sports. "I'm not going to say anything negative about him because it's not true."

Walker said he supports Trump's idea of building a wall between the U.S.-Mexico border, but does not agree with Trump's most controversial position: deporting the 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the U.S.

Walker said he would like to see a plan that enables immigrants to earn citizenship, but he still likes Trump as a presidential candidate in part from what Walker learned about Trump during the 1984 and '85 seasons with the New Jersey Generals.

Taking over control of the team after it went 6-12 in its inaugural season, Trump upgraded the roster and the Generals went 14-4 in 1984 and 11-7 in 1985 before the league folded. Walker compared Trump favorably to Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys, for whom Walker played seven seasons during his 12-year NFL career.

"(Trump) wanted to win and he was prepared to go out and do whatever it took to win," said Walker, who won the 1982 Heisman Trophy at the University of Georgia before signing with the Generals. "He was a guy that always did what he said he was going to do.

"And he invited me into his home. ... I've gotten to know that family well. I saw the way they were. They were a very good family."

Noting that Trump has been married three times, Walker said, "No matter what, he is a good man. ... Everybody has their faults."

Walker said his backing of Trump goes beyond their personal relationship. He said he shares Trump's support for a strong military, said the developer's business acumen could help create jobs and his independence could break the political gridlock in Washington.

"When are we going to get back to what's best for this country?" Walker said. "I think that's what's Donald is pushing to do."

He also said he admires leading Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton. But of Clinton, Walker added, "She's a politician. I think we had to get a president now that's more of a business person."