Bessemer City junior Darryl Williams goes toe-to-toe with Shades Valley's Daron Payne at Nike camp
HOOVER, Alabama -- Bessemer City offensive lineman Darryl Williams had a very impressive day at the office Sunday afternoon.
The junior plays left tackle for his Purple Tigers, but he's a center or a guard on Saturdays. The 2013 Birmingham News All-Metro football first teamer showed off his worth at the next level at the 2014 Birmingham Nike Football Training Camp at Spain Park on Sunday.
Darryl Williams vs. Daron Payne.jpg
Five-star prospect Daron Payne of Shades Valley and Darryl Williams, of Bessemer City, left, compete during a one-on-one drill at the Birmingham Nike Football Training Camp at Spain Park in Hoover, Ala., Sunday, March 30, 2014. (Tamika Moore/tmoore@al.com)
The 6-foot-3, 295-pounder came into the camp as an under-the-radar talent with eight offers.
Good maybe? Great? The jury was still out.
His best scholarship offers were from Kentucky and Mississippi State.
That's good, but not quite enough to push him into a category with the rest of the state's elite.
While SEC offers like that are clearly nothing to sneeze at, he wasn't considered among the state's top players in the Class of 2015.
That changed with his showing at the Nike event. Williams was one of three participants to earn a coveted invitation to the "The Opening" this July.
"That kid is a die-hard Auburn fan. He loves that school." Bessemer City coach Martez Edwards on where Williams wants to play college ball."
The event is expected to only invite 20 offensive linemen nationally to that competition. His head-to-head battle with Shades Valley five-star defensive tackle Daron Payne was one of Sunday's major highlights at the Birmingham Nike event.
Payne is rated among the nation's Top 20 prospects and is highly coveted by both Alabama and Auburn, among others. Williams impressed everyone at the event by how he measured up against Payne's strength and short-space agility for a 330-pounder at the defensive tackle spot.
"My mindset was 'I'm not going to let him win this' today," Williams said.
Williams showed he could hang with one of the nation's top-rated tackles on three consecutive reps in a one-on-one drill. Payne bested Williams on one of the reps, but the Purple Tiger held his ground on the other two. He was also right in his face the entire time.
"I came out here and competed today to put my name out there," Williams said. "I think I came one step closer to my goal."
Darry Williams vs. Daron Payne.jpg
Darryl Williams, of Bessemer City, left, gets in the face of Shades Valley five-star prospect Daron Payne after a one-on-one drill at the Birmingham Nike Football Training Camp at Spain Park in Hoover, Ala., Sunday, March 30, 2014. (Tamika Moore/tmoore@al.com)
Williams said after the event he's hoping more attention comes his way from Auburn.
"I just love (coach) J.B. Grimes and the way and how he coaches the offensive line," Williams said. "From them going 3-9 last season and then to (13-1) this season and making the championship game. I just love how he coaches though."
Would an offer end his recruiting process?
"I wouldn't say it would be over but they would move right to the very top of my offer list," he said.
He was hoping to see Grimes at the Bessemer City spring game in May against Prattville. Bessemer City coach Martez Edwards said Williams has always loved the Tigers.
"You should have seen him the week after Auburn beat Alabama," Edwards said. "That kid is a die-hard Auburn fan. He loves that school. You should have seen him at school the week after Auburn was going to play for the national championship. I'm telling you that if Auburn offered him I really think it would be over. I can almost assure you that."
Williams said his coaches at the Nike camp said he did a tremendous job of kicking back and standing his man up at the line of scrimmage.
"One of the coaches here said he takes center very seriously because that's what he played in high school and college and he told me I was the best center he's seen in two years of doing these Nike camps," Williams said. "Stuff like that makes me work harder because it shows me I have a lot of potential and just to keep working."
Edwards said Williams can play at the highest level in college. He said he's coached three future first-round draft picks on the defensive line and five U.S. Army All-Americans in his career.
"He's like a coach out on the field for us," Edwards said. "Some of his teammates on the offensive line call him 'Coach Darryl' because he knows what we're doing so well. He has an extreme knowledge of the game in terms of not only what he's supposed to do but the rest of the entire offensive line. I'd put him in the top five percent of all the kids I have coached in terms of his football intelligence. He's a student of the game who really desires to be great."
Williams gave up just one sack as a junior at Bessemer City. He graded out at 98 percent and had 28 pancake blocks. The Tigers went 10-2 last fall.
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