Walter Rouse played high school football at Sidwell Friends School in Washington, D.C., where he was a multi-sport athlete, two-time DCSAA All-State selection, and was selected to play in the 2019 Pro Football Hall of Fame World Bowl. Rouse played collegiately for four seasons at Stanford University—starting 39 games, earning All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention honors, and becoming a finalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy. He completed his college career at Oklahoma, where he started all 13 games at left tackle and earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention acclaim.