Bryson Allen-Williams checks one box, has other goals left at USC and beyond
Bryson Allen-Williams knew when he signed with South Carolina that he wanted to complete his degree. What he didn’t know was that he’d spend five years with the Gamecocks.
“It’s so crazy,” USC’s senior linebacker said. “Coming in, being a top 100 player, you think you’re going to be three-and-done, but it’s crazy how God works. Coming into this last year, the things that I have learned and the relationships I have built and really committing myself to being part of the community. I feel like that has helped me spiritually and mentally, and I think it’s going to help me on the field as well.”
Allen-Williams was one of more than 50 Gamecocks student-athletes to participate in the school’s ring ceremony for graduating athletes, which included a cap-and-gown photo shoot at Williams-Brice Stadium.
“It means a lot,” he said. “Coming here, that was one of my goals, make sure I get my degree. My father went to N.C. State and went to the NFL, but he didn’t get his degree, so through the recruiting process, talking to my mom, that is one of the main things she emphasized, make sure you emphasize school and make sure you are committed to school as much as you are to football.”
Allen-Williams’ father, George Williams, played for the New York Giants from 1999-2001. Allen-Williams hopes to follow in those footsteps, but he’s got one more season to play after redshirting last year because of a shoulder injury that kept him out of 10 games.
He hopes it comes after a breakout 2017 campaign. He has 135 tackles and 4.5 sacks in 40 career games. His best season was 2016, when he had 75 tackles.
“I had a pretty solid year my junior year,” he said. “That was the only season I really played just one position. Last year, I was beginning to get into my own as far as being confident, but everything happens for a reason. Not seeing me on the field last year, a lot of people forgot about me, and that’s OK. I understand that I have to do my job as far as making plays on the field. The level that I worked at to get to this season is going to be more work than I put in any other year.”
Allen-Williams again is expected to play multiple positions this year, splitting time between Buck defensive end and outside linebacker, but he feels more comfortable doing that as a veteran, he said.
“In the early years, I wasn’t trained to do a whole lot,” he said. “Now I’m trained in multiple ways and multiple positions. I really feel comfortable playing anywhere.”
Allen-Williams and the rest of the graduated football players will wear a patch next year to signify their accomplishment.
“It’s crazy to speak about because I get kind of emotional about it,” he said of his degree. “To have that grad patch is going to mean a lot.”
This story was originally published May 1, 2018 at 5:52 PM with the headline "Bryson Allen-Williams checks one box, has other goals left at USC and beyond."