Hall of Fame
Position: Running Back
Years: 2002-05
Place of Birth: Wynne, AR
Date of Birth: April 25, 1983
Jersey Number: 20
Height: 5-9
Weight: 207
High School: Wynne (AR)
An elusive running back who rewrote the record books, DeAngelo Williams transformed the Memphis program, leading the Tigers to three-straight bowl games for the first time in school history. The Wynne, Arkansas, native now becomes the first Memphis player to enter the College Football Hall of Fame.
A First Team All-American in 2005, Williams finished seventh in Heisman Trophy voting and was named a finalist for the Doak Walker Award. An AP Third Team All-American in 2004, Williams set an NCAA record with 34 games of 100-plus yards rushing, and he finished his career as the FBS record holder in all-purpose yards (7,573), now ranking fourth. By career's end, he ranked fourth (now sixth) in FBS history with 6,026 career rushing yards. He ended his senior campaign ranked No. 1 nationally in rushing, with an average of 178.55 yards per game.
The Tigers averaged eight wins per season from 2003 to 2005 behind Williams, and the team earned three-consecutive bowl appearances, the first time in school history. The Tigers won the 2003 New Orleans Bowl, and Williams claimed MVP honors in the Tigers' victory in the 2005 Motor City Bowl.
A three-time Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year and a three-time First Team All-C-USA performer (2003-05), he remains C-USA's all-time leading rusher (6,026 yards – more than 700 yards more than the player in second place). He finished his career as the conference's all-time leader in career rushing touchdowns (55), total touchdowns (60), carries (969), yards per carry (6.2), and 100-yard games (34). He was named to the 2002 C-USA All-Freshman Team.
Williams also holds virtually every career, single-season and single-game rushing record in Memphis history, including career rushing yards (6,026 – nearly 2,500 more yards than the player in second), career carries (969), career touchdowns (60), career rushing touchdowns (55) and 100-yard games (34). He boasts the top two single-season rushing performances in school history with 1,964 yards in 2005 and 1,948 yards in 2004.
He ranks fourth all-time in scoring at Memphis (362 points), the most points ever by a non-kicker, and he led the Tigers in scoring his final two seasons. He finished career with 969 rushes for 6,026 yards and 55 touchdowns, adding 70 receptions for 723 receiving yards and five touchdowns in career. He also returned 60 kickoffs (22.3 avg.) in his career.
He won the inaugural ARA Sportsmanship Award in 2005, and he was the MVP of the 2006 Senior Bowl. In 2012, the school renamed the team MVP award as the "DeAngelo Williams MVP Award" in his honor. Memphis retired his jersey in 2006, and he was selected to the M Club Hall of Fame in 2014. He was an inaugural member of the C-USA Hall of Fame in 2019.
Drafted in the first round (27th overall) by Carolina in 2006, he played with the Panthers until 2014 and then for the Steelers from 2015-16. He twice led the NFL in rushing touchdowns (2008, 2015). He earned a trip to the Pro Bowl in 2009 and was named a Second Team All-Pro in 2008.
After retiring from football, Williams made a brief tour as a professional wrestler in 2017, and he participated in season 32 of the Amazing Race on CBS in 2020, finishing fourth. His charitable activities include the DeAngelo Williams Foundation, which he founded in 2006 in honor of his mother, Sandra, and four aunts who passed away from breast cancer. The Foundation's "53 Strong for Sandra" program, has assisted nearly 1,000 low-income women with mammogram and cancer treatments.
