Ricky Williams
Errick Lynne Williams, Jr. (born May 21, 1977) is an American football running back for the NFL's Miami Dolphins. Williams also played for the New Orleans Saints franchise. He is the 1998 Heisman Trophy trophy winner.
Biography
College career
A tremendous athlete, he was selected out of Patrick Henry High School in the 8th round of the 1995 baseball amateur draft by the Philadelphia Phillies, and played four years at the Class A level. He was then taken in the 1998 Rule V Draft by the Montreal Expos, who sold his rights to the Texas Rangers. He played college football for the University of Texas and was backed up by all-star Chiefs running back, Priest Holmes. Williams holds or shares 20 NCAA records, and became the NCAA career rushing leader in 1998 with 6,279 yards (broken one year later by University of Wisconsin's Ron Dayne). Williams won the 64th Heisman Trophy, becoming the second Texas Longhorn to win this honor, joining Earl Campbell.
Early professional career
New Orleans Saints head coach Mike Ditka traded all of his 1999 draft picks to get Williams, the first time one player was the only draft pick of an NFL team. Williams and Ditka posed for the cover of ESPN Magazine as a bride and a groom with the heading "For Better or for Worse." Rapper Master P's organization "No Limit" negotiated his contract. Ricky later made Leigh Steinberg his agent. Ditka was later fired for the team's poor performance, and Williams was traded after 3 seasons to the Miami Dolphins on March 8, 2002 for two first-round picks. In his first season with the Dolphins, he was the NFL's leading rusher and a Pro Bowler with 1,853 yards.
Williams was noted for his dreadlocks, but shaved them off during a solo trip to Australia. He also suffers from social anxiety disorder. The disorder makes Williams somewhat of an odd ball. "Ricky's just a different guy," Saints receiver Joe Horn explained. "People he wanted to deal with, he did. And people he wanted to have nothing to do with, he didn't. No one could understand that. I don't think guys in the locker room could grasp that he wanted to be to himself, you know, quiet. If you didn't understand him and didn't know what he was about, it always kept people in suspense." Besides keeping to himself, Williams was also known for conducting post-game interviews with his helmet on.
Early retirement to football
It was announced on May 14, 2004 that he tested positive for marijuana in December 2003 and faced a $650,000 fine and a four-game suspension for violating the NFL's substance-abuse policy. He previously tested positive for marijuana shortly after he joined the Dolphins; shortly before training camp was to begin in July of 2004, Williams publicly disclosed his intent to retire from professional football.
Rumored to have failed a third drug test before announcing his retirement, Williams made his retirement official on August 2, was ineligible to play for the 2004 season and studied Ayurveda, the ancient Indian system of holistic medicine at the California College of Ayurveda that autumn.
Return to fooball
Williams officially returned to the Dolphins on July 24, 2005, and just completed his four game suspension for substance abuse. At his return press conference, Williams expressed his apologies for leaving the team two days before the start of training camp, which led the Dolphins to their worst season in years, only winning 4 games in the 2004 season. In his first appearance with the Dolphins, in the preseason Pro Football Hall of Fame Game, Williams had five carries for eight yards.
Williams has paid back a percentage of his signing bonus as part of his return. He has a twin sister, Cassie.
References
- "Deal needs his approval, NFL's blessing". November 23, 2004.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|org=ignored (help) - "Williams ready to share his compassion". November 23, 2004.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|org=ignored (help) - "Williams trades demands of NFL for travel". July 25, 2004.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|org=ignored (help) - "Williams now on his way to Miami". March 8, 2002.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|org=ignored (help) - "Dayne delivers again with Heisman". December 11, 1999.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|org=ignored (help) - "NFL Draft: Ricky Williams, Running Back". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. May 13.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=and|year=/|date=mismatch (help) - "These guys are just terrible teammates". November 11, 2005.
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