John Alan Williams (born October 26, 1960) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are to receive American football plays#Offensive terminology, handoffs from the quarterback to Rush (American football)#Offen ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

for the

Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East divisi ...

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

New Orleans Saints The New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans. The Saints compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. Since 1975, the te ...

and

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

. He also was a member of the

Michigan Panthers The Michigan Panthers were a professional American football team based in the Detroit, Michigan area. The Panthers competed in the United States Football League (USFL) as a member of the Western Conference and Central Division. The team played i ...

and Oakland Invaders in the

United States Football League The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

Early years

Williams attended Reeths Puffer High School, where he practiced football and

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

. He accepted a football scholarship from the

. As a freshman, he scored on a 40-yard

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...

run with his first collegiate carry. He had 6 carries for 56 yards and one touchdown as a backup. As a sophomore, he led the team with 119 carries for 526 yards (4.4-yard avg.). As a junior, he led the team with 116 carries for 634 yards (5.5-yard avg.) and 3 rushing touchdowns (second on the team). As a senior, he registered 77 carries for 287 yards (third on the team) and 4 touchdowns. He finished his college career with 318 carries for 1,503 yards (4.7-yard avg.), 8 rushing touchdowns, 13 receptions for 103 yards and one receiving touchdown.

Professional career

Michigan Panthers/Oakland Invaders (USFL)

Williams was selected by the

in the 14th round (159th overall) of the

1983 USFL Draft The 1983 USFL Draft was the first Collegiate Draft of the United States Football League (USFL). It took place on January 4, 1983, at the Grand Hyatt Hotel Hyatt Hotels Corporation, commonly known as Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, is an American mu ...

. He helped the team capture the USFL's first championship. He suffered a toe injury and did not play in the 24–22 title win over the Atlantic Division champion Philadelphia Stars. He was second on the team behind

Ken Lacy Ken Lacy is a former professional NFL football player who played running back for four seasons for the Kansas City Chiefs. Lacy also played for the 1983 USFL Champion Michigan Panthers The Michigan Panthers were a professional American footba ...

with 153 carries for 624 yards (4.1-yard avg.), while registering 13 touchdowns (led the team) and a 24.2 kickoff average on 12 returns (led the team). In

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

, he led the team with 197 carries for 984 yards (5-yard avg.) and 8 rushing touchdowns, while also posting 1,199 total yards from scrimmage (led the team) and 25 receptions for 215 yards. He set a franchise record with a 72-yard touchdown run. He tallied 177 rushing yards in the first-round 21-27 playoff loss against the Los Angeles Express, which at the time was the longest game in professional football history. In

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

, he moved to Oakland when the franchise merged with the

Invaders ''InVader'' is the fourth album by Finnish glam metal band Reckless Love, released on 4 March 2016 through Spinefarm Records. Track listing All songs written by Olli Herman, Pepe Reckless, and Ikka Wirtanen, unless otherwise noted. Reception Wr ...

. He was second on the team behind Albert Bentley with 186 carries for 857 yards (4.6-yard avg.) and 9 rushing touchdowns (led the team). He helped the team reach the USFL championship game where it suffered a 24–28 loss against the Baltimore Stars. Williams finished his three-year USFL career as the franchise's all-time leading rusher with 2,645 yards and as the sixth leading All-time rusher in league history.

Dallas Cowboys

On August 15,

, he signed as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

with the

after the Oakland Invaders folded. He made the team over

fullback Fullback or Full back may refer to: Sports * A position in various kinds of football, including: ** Full-back (association football), in association football (soccer), a defender playing in a wide position ** Fullback (gridiron football), in Americ ...

Ron Springs. He played in 8 games as a backup to

Timmy Newsome Timothy Arthur Newsome (born May 17, 1958) is a former American football fullback in the National Football League for the Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at Winston-Salem State University. Early years Newsome attended Ahoskie High Sc ...

. He had 13 carries for 40 yards and averaged 21.5 yards on 6 kickoff returns. He was released on October 29, to make room for

Todd Fowler Todd Fowler is a former professional American football tight end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys. He also was a member of the Houston Gamblers in the United States Football League (USFL). He played college football ...

Seattle Seahawks

On November 6,

, he was signed as a

by the

. He played in 2 games before being placed on the

injured reserve list The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

. He was released before the start of the season on August 28,

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal ente ...

New Orleans Saints

On September 2,

, he signed as a

with the

. He was limited with a sprained knee injury that he suffered in his first carry as a Saint. He only appeared in 7 games and spent the last 5 contests of the season on the

. He was released on September 7,

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

Indianapolis Colts

On September 8,

, he was claimed off waivers by the

to replace an injured

Owen Gill Owen Gill (born February 19, 1962) is a former American football running back who played professionally in the National Football League. He was selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the 2nd round (53rd overall pick) of the 1985 NFL Draft out of ...

. He was released on September 27, one game after the

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the major ...

strike was canceled.

Calgary Stampeders (CFL)

1988 File:1988 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The oil platform Piper Alpha explodes and collapses in the North Sea, killing 165 workers; The USS Vincennes (CG-49) mistakenly shoots down Iran Air Flight 655; Australia celebrates its Australian ...

, he signed with the Calgary Stampeders of the

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

, reuniting with head coach

Lary Kuharich Joseph Lawrence "Lary" Kuharich Jr. (December 20, 1945 – November 13, 2016) was an American football Coach (sport), coach who was most recently the offensive coordinator of the Arena Football League's Columbus Destroyers. He was the son of form ...

, who was his offensive coordinator with the Oakland Invaders. He was placed on the

, before being activated for the sixth game against the Calgary Stampeders. He was released from the active roster and signed to the practice roster on October 21. He was released from the practice roster on November 6. He finished with 44 carries for 130 yards.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, John 1960 births Living people Sportspeople from Muskegon, Michigan Players of American football from Michigan American football running backs Wisconsin Badgers football players Michigan Panthers players Oakland Invaders players Dallas Cowboys players Seattle Seahawks players New Orleans Saints players Indianapolis Colts players Calgary Stampeders players Canadian football running backs