JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. - Carson-Newman All-American safety Major Williams is among the 100 college football players included in Bruce Feldman's annual Freak's List for The Athletic.
Williams is the only player from NCAA Division II included in the listing, which recognizes players for both their on-the-field prowess and weight room measurables. Feldman ranks Williams 74th.
Feldman writes:
A UVA transfer, Williams had 53 tackles last year, 10 TFLs, five PBUs and an INT for the D-II program in Tennessee. "He is the leader of our team and was unanimously voted team captain," said Carson-Newman coach Ashley Ingram, who spent 16 years as an assistant at Navy. The 6-0, 195-pounder's measurables add to his stock as an NFL prospect. This offseason, he ran a 4.38-second 40-yard-dash, clocked a flying 10-yard time of 0.89-seconds, vertical-jumped 38.2 inches and had a top speed of 23.65 mph on the GPS. Williams squatted 550 pounds, power cleaned 315 and benched 340.
Carson-Newman's third-leading tackler in 2023, Major Williams did things no other defensive back has done in the history of the football program. Williams made 53 tackles on the year, including 10 behind the line of scrimmage. He is the first defensive back in the history of the Carson-Newman football program with double-digit tackles for loss in a single season.
He also had two sacks, both against Erskine (Oct. 14) to become the first defensive back with two sacks in a game as well. The Fort Myers, Fla.-product also had a pick, two fumble recoveries, a forced fumble, five pass break ups and five quarterback hurries on the year. Williams topped out with eight tackles in three consecutive weeks against Newberry (Sept. 30), Tusculum (Oct. 7) and Erskine (Oct. 14). He had multiple stops behind the line of scrimmage against the Fleet, Pioneers and at UVA Wise (Nov. 5). His contest at Wise featured his first career fumble recovery returned for a touchdown, bring back a loose pigskin 40 yards to the house. He tallied his lone interception of the year in the Eagles' opener against Virginia Lynchburg (Aug. 31).
