Jamaal Williams made his junior year debut on Saturday, Sept. 6, against Texas. Williams was suspended for BYU’s opening game against UConn, but the Cougars still rolled without him, led by backups Adam Hine, Algernon Brown and Paul Lasike.
Williams has dominated in his first two years at BYU, putting up almost unprecedented numbers. He rushed for 775 yards as a freshman, second only to Harvey Unga, and 1,233 yards as a sophomore, second only to Ronney Jenkins. His 2,008 yards rank third all time for a BYU running back after two years.
Barring injuries or an early exit to the NFL, Williams will end his BYU career as the top yards rusher of all time. Only Harvey Unga and Curtis Brown have rushed for more than 3,000 yards in their BYU careers, and Williams will join that club by the end of this season. Williams needs 724 yards per season, or about 60 yards per game over the next two seasons, to become BYU’s all-time leading rusher.
Williams will break Unga’s record because of playing time and consistency. Unga would have an almost unbreakable record, but he was suspended for his senior year. Luke Staley would be the leading rusher of all-time, but he opted to go to the NFL after his junior year. Ronney Jenkins was expelled after his sophomore year, or he might be the leading rusher. The record is Williams’ for the taking.
