Vince Williams (American football)

Vince Williams (born December 27, 1989) is an American football linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Steelers in the sixth round of the 2013 NFL Draft after his college career at Florida State.^[1] His younger brother Karlos Williams also played for the Seminoles and is currently on the Steelers' practice squad.

High school career

Williams played high school football for Ridge Community High School and was one of the state's top linebackers. He was teammates with Mike James. Williams was named Polk County Defensive Player of the Year as a junior and 3A second-team All-State honors as a senior.^[2] He amassed almost 300 tackles with 48 tackles for loss and 25 sacks over three varsity seasons.

Regarded as a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Williams was ranked as the No. 10 inside linebacker prospect in his class.^[3] He was also co-MVP of the Scout.com combine in Jacksonville. Highly recruited, Williams chose Florida State over Louisiana State, Ohio State, and Florida.^[4]

College career

Williams graduated early from high school and enrolled at Florida State in January 2008. He was the back-up at middle linebacker, behind upper-classmen Derek Nicholson and Dekoda Watson, and saw action in every game except the win at Miami (FL). He finished the year with 10 tackles, second among freshmen, behind only Nigel Bradham. For most of his would-be sophomore season, Williams battled a back injury, though he returned to the practice field over the final month of the regular season. He was eventually granted a medical redshirt.

As a redshirt sophomore in 2010, Williams earned playing time behind senior Kendall Smith at middle linebacker after enjoying an outstanding spring practice. In the season-opener against Samford, he posted a season-high five tackles (four solos). He ended the season with 17 total tackles, while participating in 11 of 14 games.

In his junior season, Williams replaced Smith in the starting line-up at middle linebacker. He ranked fifth on the team with 54 tackles (30 solo, 24 assisted) and also added five tackles for loss, two sacks, one interception and three pass break-ups. In the 2010 Champs Sports Bowl win over Notre Dame, Williams recorded five tackles. He received one of two awards for best attitude on the defense at the team's annual banquet.

Starting all 14 games at middle linebacker in his senior season, Williams helped Florida State's defense lead the nation in yards allowed per play (3.86) and rank second nationally in total defense (254.14 ypg). He finished fourth on the team with 59 tackles, while recording five or more tackles in seven of his 14 games. One of his best games came in a road win at Virginia Tech, recording five tackles, a tackle for loss, two quarterback hurries and a fumble recovery. Williams ended his college career with a career-high 10 tackles in the 2013 Orange Bowl win over Northern Illinois which included his first sack of the season.

Professional career

Williams was selected in the sixth round, 206th overall, by the Pittsburgh Steelers.

After the release of Stevenson Sylvester, Williams was moved up the depth chart as primary backup at left inside linebacker to Larry Foote.^[5][6]

Larry Foote suffered a torn bicep in Week 1 against the Titans, and the Steelers went through multiple starters until Williams started 10 of the last 11 games.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Vince Williams (American football).

• Vince Williams on Twitter
  
• Pittsburgh Steelers bio
• Florida State Seminoles bio