Jamel Ishmael Williams (born December 22, 1973) is an American former professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player who was a

safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, 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 ...

(NFL) for the

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East ...

. He also played in the XFL for the Las Vegas Outlaws. He 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 ...

at the

University of Nebraska A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

and was selected in the fifth round of the 1997 NFL draft.

Early life

Williams was born in

Gary, Indiana Gary ( ) is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 69,093 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it Indiana's List of municipalities in Indiana, eleventh-most populous city. The city has been historical ...

and attended Merrillville High School in

Merrillville, Indiana Merrillville ( , ) is a town in Ross Township, Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 36,444 at the 2020 census. Merrillville is in east-central Lake County, in the Chicago metropolitan area. On January 1, 2015, Merrillville bec ...

. While at Merrillville, he played

high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

, and participated in

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

. In football, Williams was a four-year

letterman Letterman may refer to: * Letterman (sports), a classification of high school or college athlete in the United States People * David Letterman (born 1947), American television talk show host ** ''Late Night with David Letterman'', talk show that ...

and helped lead Merrillville to a Class 5A regional title as he scored 45 touchdowns and rushed for 3,238 yards (5.7 per carry) in his high school career.

College career

Williams attended and played

from 1994-1996 for the

Cornhuskers. After sitting out during his freshman season, he helped Nebraska go undefeated in 1994 on their way to the National Title. Williams again helped the Cornhuskers go undefeated in 1995, with Nebraska securing a spot in the national title game against the

Florida Gators The Florida Gators are the College sports in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville, Florida, Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni an ...

in the

1996 Fiesta Bowl The 1996 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl game was a post-season college football bowl game that was played on January 2, 1996, at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona as part of 1995 college football season. The game was the first national championship ga ...

. During that game, Williams sacked Florida QB

Danny Wuerffel Daniel Carl Wuerffel (born May 27, 1974) is an American former American football, football quarterback who played college football for the Florida Gators football, Florida Gators and professional football in the National Football League (NFL). ...

for a safety early in the second quarter, part of a 29 point explosion by the Huskers. Nebraska went on to win 62-24, securing their second national title in a row. Nebraska's record during William's three years was 36-2.

Professional career

Williams was selected in the fifth round of the 1997 NFL draft by the

, and played there from 1997 to 1999. He later played in the XFL for the Las Vegas Outlaws in 2001. Williams won the XFL's first opening scramble, used to determine which team would receive the opening kickoff instead of a

coin toss A coin is a small object, usually round and flat, used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order to facilitate trade. They are most often issued by a ...

, defeating Donnie Caldwell of the New York/New Jersey Hitmen.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Jamel 1973 births Living people Players of American football from Gary, Indiana American football safeties Nebraska Cornhuskers football players Washington Redskins players Las Vegas Outlaws (XFL) players