Football: Newman basketball star back on the gridiron

Williams has enjoyed his first season of football since fifth grade

In a year like no other, Newman junior Marcus Williams decided to go back to something that used to be familiar to him.

It’s worked out great for him and the Comets.

The all-state basketball player is playing football this spring for the first time since fifth grade, and showed off his chops on the gridiron with 46 yards rushing and a touchdown in Saturday’s 35-6 win over previously unbeaten St. Bede.

“It’s been really fun. Everybody’s been really supportive of me,” Williams said. “Obviously not playing for a long time, I’ve been able to pick up the game pretty well thanks to the coaches and everybody. They’ve been patient with me, and it’s been great.”

With basketball season over instead of on the horizon, as is usually the case during football season, and it being shortened to just a few weeks for the Comets, Williams wanted to get more competition out of his junior season – even if it was in a different sport.

“A year like this is really strange. We really didn’t have a whole lot of season, everything was a little bit up in the air. So I figured, in a strange year like this, why not try football and see if I liked it?” Williams said. “I hadn’t played in about six years – the last time I played was in fifth grade – so I just tried it again this year, just to try something new.”

It’s a move his teammates have been in favor of wholeheartedly; knowing th type of athlete and natural leader Williams is.

“Marcus has a versatility that I feel like we just haven’t had these past few years,’ Newman senior quarterback Jake Ackman said. “A talented kid that can line up at D-line, DB, even linebacker, that’s huge. On the offensive side of the ball, having him running hard is huge, too. It’s just another threat, and not just that, but he’s a great guy, too. A great guy to have around and just helps bring the team morale up.”

One of the happiest guys to see Williams out there in pads and a helmet is Newman coach Brandon Kreczmer. He appreciates Williams’ athleticism, but absolutely loves how he interacts with his teammates.

He’s also a pretty quick study, it turns out.

“He just brings energy,” Kreczmer said. “He’s a great athlete, probably the best athlete on the field for us, and maybe one of the best athletes in the school, and he just comes out and plays hard. He’s versatile, strong, quick, explosive. He’s been a pleasure to have, he’s a quick learner; he hasn’t played since fifth grade, and he also missed two weeks early in the spring season while he was quarantined, so he’s only really had two weeks of practice and two games, so just what he’s been able to pick up quickly, he’s obviously been giving us results on the field. The kids really feed off that.”

That’s been the best part for Williams, is getting spend more time competing with his friends in a year when his basketball season didn’t provide as much time together as usual.

“Just being out there with my teammates is the best part,” Williams said. “Out there on the basketball court, it’s really fun just being out there with all my friends, but being out here on the field with even more of my friends and classmates, and even some of my teachers out here, it’s just been really fun being out here and experiencing it all.”

As much fun as he’s had the past few weeks, there was a bit of an eye-opening experience when he first got out on the field and the pads started popping.

“I knew football was a physical game, but once I had that first hit, I thought, ‘Oh, I’m not going to get a foul call out here.’ It’s just a real physical game,” Williams said. “Another thing I realized too is that it’s very mental. You have to be thinking the next play ahead all the time, and just taking in the moment and moving on. Just like in basketball, if something bad happens, you’ve just got to drop it and move on to the next play.”

This week will provide the final plays of the season for the Comets (3-0), and they’ll come in what would normally be a playoff atmosphere against an undefeated Princeton team. In fact, both teams made deeps runs in 20-19; the Comets claimed the Class 2A state title, and Princeton advancing to the 3A semifinals.

The Tigers come in 4-0, and have been dominating their opponents so far this season, allowing just 78.5 rushing yards and 7.8 points per game while scoring ? themselves.

They’re also hungry to avenge a tough loss the last time the teams played, when Newman rallied from a 21-10 halftime deficit to win 25-21 in Week 2 of 2019.

“We’ve stressed to the team this week that this is our state game. Win, lose or draw, we’re done. Not only that, we know we’ve got the target on our back after last year; I think they think they should’ve won that game, being up 21-10 at halftime. We were able to come back and win, so I know this one’s been circled on their schedule since that game,” Kreczmer said. “And why wouldn’t you want to end with a tough opponent like Princeton? We’re looking forward to it. We know we’re going to have to play a really good game to be successful, and it’s going to be a really good game. It’s just going to come down to who blocks and tackles the best.”

Moving the ball against the stingy Princeton defense is the biggest challenge facing the Comets in their four-week season.

Finding a way to get Andrew Velasquez (48 rushes, 330 yards, 8 TDs), Brennen Cook (27 rushes, 98 yards, 3 TDs), Brady Stevens (15 rushes, 97 yards), Ehtan Van Landuit (15 rushes, 80 yards) and the ret of the offense on track is something Newman is zeroed in on heading into the finale.

“Defensively, their ‘backers flow hard. We know their inside ‘backers are going to try to make plays in the gaps, so the key is just our O-line making the right decision knowing who to block and just getting there, getting in their way,” Ackman said. “The DBs come in and hit hard, obviously their D-line is big and strong. It’s going to be a big challenge, and I hope we’re ready for it.”

On the other side of the ball, the Comets have given up just 13 points in three games, but they’re facing their toughest test in their final game. The Tigers boast a potent, balanced 1-2 punch with all-state running back and NIU signee Ronde Worrels (426 rushing yards, 9 TDs) and quarterback Tyler Gibson (594 passing yards, 6 TD passes, 2 TD runs).

“Ronde is a generational type of player,” Ackman said. “Last year he gave us a run for our money, so it’s just great to get competition like that. And their quarterback, Tyler Gibson, is a great player and a great guy. The key defensively is we’ve just got to stop that run and make them pass, get into the negative-game script and just see what we can do from there.”