Williams Making The Most of His Opportunity
September 16, 2019 | Football
Defensive players dream of running down the sideline untouched and into the end zone. But it's rare. In fact, Ball State hadn't gotten a touchdown from a defensive player since November 2014. Jordan Williams woke up Saturday morning focusing on his role as outside linebacker and nothing more. Do your job. But when his opportunity came, Williams scooped and scored, taking a Florida Atlantic fumble 60 yards into the end zone in the first quarter of Saturday's game.
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"When I woke up this morning, I was just happy and blessed to be playing football," Williams said. "I didn't wake up this morning expecting to get into the end zone. That's not my job. I was just trying to do my 1-11th and be a team player and do what I have to do to help the team."
The big play came with 1:16 on the clock in the opening quarter and BSU trailing 7-0. Bryce Cosby stripped FAU's Willie Wright after a short completion and the next thing he knew Williams was sprinting down the sideline for six. Williams said his last score came in high school when he played wide receiver at Centennial High School.
PHOTOS: Watch the entire play in 6 Instagram photos
"Honestly, I felt like I was (running back) Caleb Huntley. I felt like a running back at that moment," Williams said with a laugh. "The first thing I thought to myself was, 'Run your hardest.' Because I've seen people get caught from behind. The second thing was ball security. And the third thing was run through the goal line, don't drop the ball until I cross the goal line.
"We've been wanting to score a defensive touchdown, that's been on our list. I thought my teammates were happier than I was. The energy definitely went up."
Williams had two fumble recoveries on the day and contributed a sack on a key third down. The redshirt sophomore from Champaign, Illinois, has carved out an increased role on the defense by taking advantage of opportunities. After redshirting as a freshman, he played sparingly in 2018, making six tackles. But inserted into the lineup at linebacker after Ray Wilborn's shift to safety, Williams has put in the work and been one of the bright spots early this season.
"He's grown every week," head coach Mike Neu said after the FAU game. "His athleticism was on display today when you saw him recover that fumble and take it the distance. That showed his skillset that's gotten us fired up as coaches that we need to get him on the field. His confidence is growing every week and he's trending in the upward direction. To see his hard work pay off and to continue to get better every week is important."
The Cardinals are hoping he'll have chances to make more big plays like he did last Saturday. The speed and excitement of changing a game was a moment to savor, and even in his biggest moment Williams thought about details and his teammates.
"I just held the ball tight and turned around knowing I had 10 other guys legally on the field. I knew 20 more were coming. I don't remember, I just saw a lot of red."
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#ScoopNScore. All square. #OTM pic.twitter.com/NKl9MgsWph
— Ball State Football (@BallStateFB) September 14, 2019
"When I woke up this morning, I was just happy and blessed to be playing football," Williams said. "I didn't wake up this morning expecting to get into the end zone. That's not my job. I was just trying to do my 1-11th and be a team player and do what I have to do to help the team."
The big play came with 1:16 on the clock in the opening quarter and BSU trailing 7-0. Bryce Cosby stripped FAU's Willie Wright after a short completion and the next thing he knew Williams was sprinting down the sideline for six. Williams said his last score came in high school when he played wide receiver at Centennial High School.
PHOTOS: Watch the entire play in 6 Instagram photos
"Honestly, I felt like I was (running back) Caleb Huntley. I felt like a running back at that moment," Williams said with a laugh. "The first thing I thought to myself was, 'Run your hardest.' Because I've seen people get caught from behind. The second thing was ball security. And the third thing was run through the goal line, don't drop the ball until I cross the goal line.
"We've been wanting to score a defensive touchdown, that's been on our list. I thought my teammates were happier than I was. The energy definitely went up."
Williams had two fumble recoveries on the day and contributed a sack on a key third down. The redshirt sophomore from Champaign, Illinois, has carved out an increased role on the defense by taking advantage of opportunities. After redshirting as a freshman, he played sparingly in 2018, making six tackles. But inserted into the lineup at linebacker after Ray Wilborn's shift to safety, Williams has put in the work and been one of the bright spots early this season.
"He's grown every week," head coach Mike Neu said after the FAU game. "His athleticism was on display today when you saw him recover that fumble and take it the distance. That showed his skillset that's gotten us fired up as coaches that we need to get him on the field. His confidence is growing every week and he's trending in the upward direction. To see his hard work pay off and to continue to get better every week is important."
The Cardinals are hoping he'll have chances to make more big plays like he did last Saturday. The speed and excitement of changing a game was a moment to savor, and even in his biggest moment Williams thought about details and his teammates.
"I just held the ball tight and turned around knowing I had 10 other guys legally on the field. I knew 20 more were coming. I don't remember, I just saw a lot of red."
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