Former Gridiron Football All-American Wydett Williams has signed an undrafted free agent deal with the Arizona Cardinals. Williams becomes the second player in the Gridiron Football All-American Bowl Game’s history to sign with a NFL team joining AJ Gillie, who was the first to do so when he signed with the Seattle Seahawks coming out of UL.
Williams’ story is a spectacular one as he started his football career at General Trass High School located in Lake Providence, Louisiana with a population of 3,500. Growing up in a poor area of the state with a median income of $36,700, Williams became a star for his football team leading the Panthers all the way to the Quarterfinals with a 12-1 record losing to eventual state champion Amite. Along the way, he excelled accounting for over, 2,200 total yards and 16 touchdowns.
At the conclusion of a great senior season, Williams played in the 2021 Gridiron Football All-American Bowl Game where he earned Offensive MVP honors for the East Team. His experience playing in the bowl game showed him what collegiate life was going to be about.
““I enjoyed every moment of it especially because it was the next thing closest to practice. Close to college practices and similar events. It was just being out there, being tuned in to what I have to do when I was playing quarterback and making the right reads and getting the ball out in time.”
Wydett Williams Jr.
After playing quarterback his high school career, Williams made the switch to safety at Delta State University, which is a Division II university located in Cleveland, Mississippi. During his two years there, Williams recorded 72 total tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, a sack, and 6 pass deflections, earning all-conference honors along the way.
That captured the attention of the ULM Warhawks as Williams made the move from Division II to Division I. The step up in competition did not phase the former quarterback as he earned 1st Team All-Sun Belt Conference honors with 100 total tackles, four PBUs, a sack, a forced fumble, and three interceptions.
For his final year of eligibility, Williams decided to take his talents to the SEC and play against the best of the best college football has to offer at Ole Miss. Once again, Williams showed that he belonged and not only did he belong, but he proved to be a defensive leader for a Rebels team that made it all the way to the College Football Playoff Semifinals. Earning 1st Team All-SEC honors and being graded as the highest safety by Pro Football Scouting Network, Williams finished with 73 tackles, 9 PBUs, and 3 interceptions.
At the conclusion of his senior season, Williams entered his name in the NFL Draft and that has led him to this point. From his humble beginnings at General Trass High School to now being in the NFL with the Arizona Cardinals, Wydett Williams has shown that it does not matter where you start, but it is how you finish. Being one of the first players in Gridiron Football All-American Bowl Game history to make it to the NFL, it is only appropriate that a player like Williams that flew under the radar is the one to show everybody that nothing is impossible.
“It doesn’t matter where you start. Everywhere you go, you gotta have a work ethic. You gotta work hard. You gotta be disciplined. Just because you’re playing a smaller division of ball doesn’t mean you gotta take days off.”
Wydett Williams Jr.
“Going through the whole journey of coming from a small area to going to a small college and just building on and taking each step in faith is really what built me to who I am today.”
Wydett Williams Jr.
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