After long wait, Deontai Williams will finally get his chance
Deontai Williams sat down at the press conference podium in front of the Zoom camera and microphone and wasn’t quite sure what to do with his mask.
In his defense, it had been more than a full calendar year since the senior safety had to do an interview, let alone one amid a pandemic.
The important part was that Williams was back at the forefront of Nebraska’s defense on Tuesday after a season-ending shoulder injury spoiled his 2019 campaign, not even one game into the year.
Now fully healthy again, the former junior college transfer is ready to make his mark as one of the leaders of NU’s secondary.
“Ever since I got hurt, I’ve been on the move to get better, learn more about the playbook, and try to be that captain that the defense needs,” Williams said.
When Williams was injured in the 2019 opener vs. South Alabama and then had season-ending surgery the next day, it would end up being a more significant blow to Nebraska's defense than anyone could have thought.
Though he only started one his during his first season as a Husker in 2018, Williams still posted an overall grade of 91.3 per PFF, making him the highest-rated safety in the Big Ten and earning a spot on the outlet's All-Big Ten team as a result.
Even more, PFF listed Williams as an honorable mention All-American.
It seemed like anytime Williams was on the field in 2018, he was making plays. He forced two fumbles, picked off two passes, and his longest allowed completion went for only 17 yards.
But Nebraska never got to see what the Jacksonville, Fla., native could do as a full-time starter, and the ripple effect his injury had on the entire defense became more noticeable by the week.
"When he got injured, I thought he was playing as good a football as anybody on the defense, for sure," NU defensive coordinator Erik Chinander said back in May. "That hurt us a lot just because of his play... Having to move guys around and losing a really good player hurt."
Williams hit the ground running when Nebraska got back to work for the start of spring practices back in March, but that too was cut short before it could barely begin when COVID-19 shut down the sports world.
A senior who had already earned his degree in child, youth, and family studies back in December, Williams waited and watched like everyone else while his final season of college football hung in limbo.
Williams admitted he briefly thought about exploring his options at another school if the Big Ten stuck with its decision to postpone the season until the spring. In the end, he decided to stay at Nebraska and focus only on what he could control.
“I looked at it this way: just keep my head down and stay focused, no matter what,” Williams said. “You never know what’s going to go down. I don’t have control over any of that.”
His plan ultimately paid off, and now the defensive backs coach Travis Fisher and the Huskers have high hopes for what Williams will bring to the secondary both on and off the field.
“I love the kid,” Fisher said of Williams. “He’s great in the room. He has the culture. He brings the younger guys along; he holds the older guys accountable; he holds himself accountable. It’s a pleasure to coach him. I can’t say enough about him.”
“I’m fired up,” Williams added. “I’m ready to hit and fly around and show what I’ve got. I still have a lot to prove.”