Alphonso "Al" Williams (born October 5, 1961) is a former

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

who played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Nevada Wolf Pack The Nevada Wolf Pack are the athletic teams that represent the University of Nevada, Reno. They are part of NCAA's Division I's Mountain West Conference. It was founded on October 24, 1896 with football as the Sagebrushers in Reno, Nevada. H ...

, then played at a professional level in the

USFL The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

, and

CFL The Canadian Football League (CFL; , LCF) is a professional Canadian football league in Canada. It comprises nine teams divided into two divisions, with four teams in the East Division and five in the West Division. The CFL is the highest pr ...

Professional career

Williams was selected by the

New Jersey Generals The New Jersey Generals were a franchise of the United States Football League (USFL) established in 1982 to begin play in the spring and summer of 1983. The team played three seasons from 1983 to 1985, winning 31 regular season games and losing ...

in the 18th round (364th overall) of the

1984 USFL Draft The 1984 USFL draft was the second collegiate draft of the United States Football League The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league playe ...

and the

Detroit Lions The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...

in the first round (20th overall) of the 1984 NFL Supplemental Draft. He ended up playing for the Oklahoma/Arizona Outlaws, while the Detroit Lions kept him on the practice squad. After the USFL folded and the Detroit Lions released him in 1986, Williams became a free agent. In 1987, Williams was picked up by the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team in the National Football League (NFL). The Chargers played in San Diego, California from 1961 until 2016, before relocating back to the Greater Los Angeles area, where the franch ...

and

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. Since 1975, the team ...

during preseason, then played in three games for the San Diego Chargers during the NFLPA strike. He was traded to the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (colloquially known as the Bucs) are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC S ...

for a conditional draft pick, then last played in the CFL for the

Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division (CFL), East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home game ...

Personal life

Williams had settled in Arizona. He revealed in a podcast with former teammate

Billy Ray Smith Jr. Billy Ray Smith Jr. (born August 10, 1961) is an American former professional football player who was a linebacker in the National Football League (NFL) for ten seasons during the 1980s and 1990s. He played college football for the Arkansas Ra ...

that he was coaching and been involved with multiple charities for the local youth.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Al 1961 births Living people American football wide receivers Canadian football wide receivers Long Beach Polytechnic High School alumni San Diego Chargers players Oklahoma Outlaws players Arizona Outlaws players Hamilton Tiger-Cats players Nevada Wolf Pack football players