Five years ago, Josh Williams was a member of the scout team as a walk-on on LSU’s roster. Today, he may be the Tigers’ lead running back headed into the 2023 season.
The three-time Southeastern Conference Academic Honor Roll selection faced many trials and tribulations to get to where he is today.
“It could be a whole story over a movie or a book, honestly. Coming in as a walk-on, not knowing where I’d end up, and not even knowing how I’d ever be able to play here,” Williams said. “Ended up being four years, five years later, graduating, still getting my grad degree. It’s been a great journey. Couldn’t have asked for anything else.”
It may not be a story turned into a book or a movie just yet, but it’s still one that many in the program could learn from.
Williams, a high school graduate in the class of 2019, played at the Kinkaid School in Houston, Texas. He was a two-star recruit, and walked on at LSU over scholarship offers from the University of Dayton, Drake University and Lafayette College. This was the first leap of faith he took with LSU, and it was before he even got to Baton Rouge.
Williams came to LSU when it was tough to get time on the field, especially as a walk-on. His freshman season was the 2019 season, the year LSU won the national championship, and had a team that many would arguably consider one of the best college football teams in recent memory. Williams redshirted that season.
But the season of being on scout team during a national championship run paid off in fall camp in 2020. During fall camp, he was put on scholarship. Williams made an impact during his first season on scholarship at LSU, playing in all 10 games either at running back or on the kick return team.
His sophomore season in 2021 was no different. He played in all 13 games, and shined when the team needed a spark. In the Texas Bowl against Kansas State, where the team was plagued with injuries, Williams ran for a season-high 32 yards on seven carries.
The firepower he showed in the Texas Bowl allowed coaches to see who he truly was. For his junior season in 2022, he was LSU’s starting running back for much of the season. During his sophomore season, he finished with 107 rushing yards on 23 carries. But his junior season, he finished with 532 rushing yards and six rushing touchdowns.
Williams’ journey from a walk-on on the scout team to LSU’s starting running back is inspiring alone, but he’s also battled injuries along the way. He battled a knee injury throughout the 2022 season, missing the Citrus Bowl against Purdue due to a knee surgery he underwent after the regular season concluded. His injuries carried into the spring, where he wasn’t able to partake in any of the spring football season.
“I was out the whole spring. I essentially got to watch all the running backs take rep after rep after rep,” Williams said. “Just being in that situation, it gives you a different perspective on the sport, and you enjoy the moment when you get to come back.”
There were similar lessons for Williams while suffering his injuries. While he was a walk-on, there were a lot of unknowns for when he’d be able to step on the field.
During his injury, the unknowns of when he could step on the field weren’t because of the people in front of him, but because of his health. But the injuries allowed him to appreciate the game that much more, and taught him to never take playtime for granted.
“It taught me that any play, your season can be over, or you can never play sports again at any given play,” Williams said. “So it just taught me to cherish the moments that you have and never take reps for granted.”
Now it’s Williams’ senior season, and now that he’s healthy, he comes into it with the biggest expectations yet. While his expectations are high, the depth that LSU’s running back room comes in with takes the pressure off of him.
Williams will be the leader of that running back room, especially with the variety of experience he has. Although he was a leader in his junior season, the role might look a lot different as he embarks on his senior season.
“I’m just going to try to be more of a vocal leader this year,” Williams said. “Last year, I stepped into a more ‘lead-by-example’ role, and this year I’ve been trying to talk more and just let them ask me questions or whatever they want. Just trying to be more of a team player.”
His leadership hasn’t gone unnoticed by the coaching staff either. Being one of the most experienced players on the team, he was already considered a leader coming into the season.
“He’s always been a leader,” head coach Brian Kelly said. “A lot of the young guys, Holly and Jackson, follow him. If they stick around and do what Josh does, they will be in great shape.”
There are a lot of aspects of the game that Williams is looking forward to. In a lot of ways, Williams has some of the brightest lights on him out of everyone on the LSU football team. But he can’t look into those lights without looking back at the walk-on playing scout team during the national championship season.
Williams wants his teammates to be able to learn from him as the player he is today. What he wants even more, though, is for any player in his position to take a leap of faith and bet on himself.
“One thing I would say to players that are in a situation they don’t really know, I would say it’s not about other people’s situations, it’s about yours. You have your journey, and if you try to compare you journey to somebody else’s, it’s starts to be a negativity,” Williams said. “I would just say if you focus on yourself and try and stay as consistent as possible, and get better each and every day, you can’t get worse, you have to get better.”
