Andre Williams

Andre Rishard Williams (born August 28, 1992) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL).

He played college football for the Boston College Eagles.

The performance also surpassed the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) record, previously set at 329 yards by John Leach of Wake Forest in 1993.

During the game, he also broke the school's single season record for rushing yards, finishing the day with 1,810 yards.

He led Parkland High School to a 10–3 record in 2009.

In addition to football, he was also a standout athlete for Parkland High School's track and field team.

He was also timed at 14.61 seconds in the 110 meter hurdles in 2009.

At the 2010 Pennsylvania 3A state championship, he finished third in the state in the 100 meters with a time of 10.76 seconds and second in the state in the 200 meters with a time of 22.01 seconds.

In 2010, Williams was ranked a three-star recruit by Rivals.com and was rated the 44th best running back prospect in the nation.

He committed to Boston College over offers from Temple, Akron and Vanderbilt.

Williams attended Boston College, where he played for its Eagles football team from 2010 to 2013.

He graduated early with a degree in applied psychology and human development.

Williams's first three years at Boston College were relatively uneventful.

Playing as a true freshman in 2010, Williams showed his potential while sharing the backfield with Montel Harris and Sterlin Phifer.

He played in all 13 games, rushing for 461 yards on 95 carries with two touchdowns.

In the final regular season game of the year, playing at Syracuse, he set the school record for rushing attempts in a game, running 42 times as the Eagles beat the Orange 16–7.

His efforts were mostly in vain though, as the Eagles continued to progressively get worse, winning 7 games in 2010, 4 in 2011, and only 2 in 2012.

His three years of experience, however would pave the way for his breakout senior year and a turnaround for the Eagles team.

With a change in coaching during the offseason, Steve Addazio brought in new coordinators and a new style of offense focused heavily on the run.

Williams started off the year as a powerful weapon, running for 114 and 204 yards respectively in wins over Villanova and Wake Forest, and scoring once in each game.

He had his worst performance of the season against a strong USC defense, managing only 38 yards.

However, he bounced back against #8 ranked Florida State and ran for 149 yards as the Eagles nearly upset the eventual National Champions.

The following week, during the Homecoming game against Army, Williams exploded offensively, scoring five touchdowns and rushing for 263 yards, only 1 yard shy of the school's single game rushing record.

He momentarily tied the record, but unfortunately lost a yard on his last rushing attempt of the game, bringing his total back down.

After rushing for only 70 yards at Clemson, he gave two solid performances against UNC and Virginia Tech, rushing for 172 and 166 yards, respectively, and scoring three times.

The next week at New Mexico State, Williams managed to break the single game record that he came so close to during the Army game, running for 295 yards and two scores.

The following week, playing on senior day, Boston College's final home game of the season against NC State, Williams broke his own record and ran for 339 yards on 42 carries, scoring twice.

The win made BC bowl eligible for the first time since 2010, and tripled the previous year's win total, prompting the students and fans to rush the field and celebrate with the team following the win.

As a sophomore in 2011, Williams continued to improve, but played less time with sharing the backfield with Rolandon Finch, Tahj Kimble, and Montel Harris, starting seven of 10 games and rushing for 517 yards on 124 carries with four touchdowns.

As a junior in 2012, he continued to be a reliable option, although for a pass-heavy offense, starting eight of nine games, rushing for 584 yards on 130 carries and four touchdowns.

He was a finalist for the 2013 Heisman Trophy, and won the 2013 Doak Walker Award as the nation's best running back.

During the 2013 season, Williams became only the 16th player in NCAA history to rush for over 2,000 yards and he finished his college career ranked fifth all-time for most yards rushed in a single season with 2,177 yards.

He was selected by the New York Giants in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL draft.

Adrew Williams was born in Poughkeepsie, New York to Jamaican immigrants Lancelene and Ervin.

Williams spent his first year in Jamaica before returning to live in Central Jersey with his parents, sister, and two brothers.

His family also lived in Atlanta and Allentown, Pennsylvania.

"By the eighth grade," Williams later explained, "I decided I was going to play Division I football."

After transferring from Harrison High School in Kennesaw, Georgia, Williams attended Parkland High School in South Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania.

As a senior, he had 1,913 rushing yards on 128 carries and 33 touchdowns for the football team.

He earned All-State Class AAAA first-team honors as a senior running back and was selected as The Morning Call Player of the Year.