The entire West Virginia Mountaineer football program showed colossal grit and resolve in beating No. 3-ranked Oklahoma back in the 2008 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl; the way then-interim coach Bill Stewart rallied WVU in a seemingly David versus Goliath battle has been well-documented. Perhaps what some WVU followers do not know is the impression the win made on athlete Avery Williams, a class of 2010 prospect from Calvin Coolidge High School, in Washington, D.C.
“Their program knew Oklahoma had beat them on paper,” he said. “ESPN College Game Day was saying that.”
When asked what he liked most about WVU, Williams answered: “Their heart.
“They showed that paper can’t win games. Paper doesn’t match heart. You can rip paper, but you can’t rip a heart.”
PHOTO CREDIT: The Washington Post
Williams is 5-foot-10, 168 pounds and has been offered by the likes of WVU, Utah, Michigan State and Kansas. “West Virginia stands as my top,” he said, adding that Georgia will come into the mix once he receives a written offer from the Bulldogs. ESPN Scouts Inc graded him with a 76 and ranked him a top 100 athlete in the 2010 recruiting class.
For Calvin Coolidge High School, Williams plays defensive back, safety, running back and slot receiver. He’s already amassed more than 500 rush yards and seven touchdowns as a senior, as well as two receiving touchdowns.
WVU running backs/slot receivers coach Chris Beatty has been recruiting Williams for the Mountaineers. “Me and coach Beatty have a real nice relationship,” Williams said. “He talks to me every chance he can. When I call him, we don’t just talk about football -- we talk about life. He just has a newborn son and we talk about that.”
Williams said Beatty would like to use his talents at running back and slot receiver. “He tells me how they would use me like [Noel] Devine. He has big plans for me at WVU. Period.”
WVU Head coach Bill Stewart’s proclaimed motto of spreading the wealth around on offense is an idea that intrigues Williams. “Everybody gets the ball. Everybody gets their time to shine,” said Williams. “It’s basically getting the ball to the playmakers in the open field and let em rock with it.”
This past Saturday, Williams planned on taking an official visit to Morgantown, but explained, “Due to some things that went on, I couldn’t take it.”
He plans on visiting Utah this coming weekend, but said he plans on taking official visits after that to WVU, then Michigan State and Kansas. Williams has been to WVU twice before on unofficial visits.
Williams plans on announcing his commitment near Thanksgiving time.
The Mountaineers have had great success on the football field recently in recruiting players that are said to be undersized, such as Devine and Jock Sanders. “By the time I get to college, I feel like that won’t be a problem,” he said.
Williams fits the undersized billing too, but to him, he embraces the underdog role that sometimes surrounds WVU.
“They like being the underdog,” he said. “You can just really tell it’s a family. It is a unit. They got that heart.”
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Avery Williams ESPN.Com Recruiting Video
ESPN.com Evaluation: "Williams is a versatile skilled athlete on both sides of the football. He isn't the biggest player on the field but has good skills along with possessing excellent quickness and impressive speed. Shows the talents to play either safety or corner. At corner can run with a receiver man to man while staying on the inside hip. Positioning makes it tough to throw over the top; when attempted, his leaping ability helps him make a play on the football. Comes out of coverage quickly from the corner position to contain the football. Makes solid tackles but increased bulk will help him be more physical when delivering the hit. A very instinctive free safety that breaks quickly on passes to the intermediate and deep zones. Soft and reliable hands along with football intelligence displayed when making the interception and heading downfield. Demonstrates same athleticism as a running back on offense. Quick feet and burst allows him to pull away from defenders in the openfield. Makes cuts while going full speed and often freezes would-be tacklers in their tracks. Must be careful to secure the football in a crowd; tends to carry the football a little low and away from the body. Catches the football easily from the running back position and knows how to stay in the hips of his blockers on the screen pass. Williams is a real talent and most likely end up in the secondary. He could play early in his career as a safety, corner or nickel back."