Josh Williams has just about seen it all.
He only turned 23 this summer, but you’d be hard-pressed to find another college athlete who has had as unique and impactful a journey as Williams—both on and off the field.
By now, most LSU fans have probably heard about his early LSU years: a classic, feel-good tale of a walk-on who earns his scholarship through hard work and dedication.
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But Williams never wanted that to be the end of his story. He always knew there was more to be written. And ever since his arrival on campus in 2019, the chapters have continued to pile up.
“I didn’t buy into the whole walk-on lifestyle or think that I’m not good enough to play,” Williams tells 225. “I basically asked the coaches, ‘What do I need to do to get on the field?’ I worked my tail off … and I got more opportunities to go on the field and more shots to run the ball more. Each year, I’ve gotten more (playing time) and I’ve played better. I want to continue to show that I’m a hard worker and play with all my might.”
The 5-foot-9, 205-pound, tailback has slowly seen his productivity rise each year throughout his college career, and he’s also one of just a handful of Tigers still on the roster from the 2019 national championship team.
Williams was a scout-team player back then and didn’t record an official stat for LSU, but he still played a pivotal role in helping the starters with their weekly game preparation.
More importantly, though, Williams got to see what it looked like to be a part of a title-winning team. He would watch the team leaders and learn their tendencies: how they carried themselves, how they held each other accountable and how they built a bond throughout the group.
The following two seasons wouldn’t be quite as enjoyable, as LSU rattled off consecutive underwhelming 5-5 and 6-7 records. But Williams still made an effort to soak it all in, learning just as much from the low points as he did from the highs.
“Being here for the natty and also having the chance to experience the not-so-good years is a big deal, because I got to see the duality of it,” Williams says. “I got to see what works and what doesn’t work. For that 2019 team, we had multiple leaders on the team, not just one. It wasn’t about the coaches telling us what we needed to do. It was the players telling other players what they need to do. The years where we didn’t do as well, I felt like we weren’t as focused on football. Maybe the off-the-field issues or academics weren’t there … it’s taking you away from football.”
The program has since done a 180 under Brian Kelly’s leadership, and Williams has played a big part in that success despite battling a slew of four- and five-star prospects for playing time.
The Houston native, who ranked as a two-star recruit out of high school, carried the ball 97 times for 532 yards—the most among Tiger tailbacks—to go along with six touchdowns last season.
He added another 21 catches for 132 yards through the air, while also proving to be a reliable pass blocker for quarterback Jayden Daniels.
“He’s a very underrated player. But people around him know he’s a good football player,” Daniels tells 225 of Williams. “He’s going to do the right thing all the time on and off the field. It’s inspiring to see somebody who came from (a walk-on) and being counted out, and now he’s making plays on the biggest stage. It’s very inspiring for him to do that.”
As if all that wasn’t impressive enough, Williams also graduated early this past December with a marketing degree and a 3.4 GPA, earning SEC Academic Honor Roll for the third consecutive year.
He hopped straight into LSU’s MBA program and plans to finish at the end of the fall semester.
Williams’ experiences don’t end in Baton Rouge. He was one of 11 LSU football players who traveled to Dakar, Senegal, this summer for a study abroad program.
The trip was part of an African American social studies class, with the aim being to “purposely explore the course themes of race, sports and civic engagement in a Senegalese context.”
When asked about the trip today, Williams lights up. He calls the whole experience amazing, another humbling learning experience on his journey.
“Just to see how those guys live and to see what they consider a problem and to see their perspective on life is very heartfelt and a perspective-changer,” Williams says. “You know, we’ve got little kids cussing out their mom because they didn’t get the new iPad or the new Jordans or they didn’t get McDonald’s or Chick-fil-A. And these kids are literally begging for clean water. They’re walking around on dirt roads, but no shoes, no shirt, and they’re sweating.”
Williams says he still keeps in touch with some of the kids he met in Senegal, messaging them throughout the week or playing video games with them whenever he can find the time.
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It’s an image that seems to perfectly sum up Josh Williams. In just four short years he’s gone from a quiet, unknown name having to fight for a spot on the roster, to becoming a team leader, a college grad and an international traveler, sharing everything he’s learned with others around him.
He really has seen it all.
This article was originally published in the 2023 Tiger Pride issue of 225 magazine.