Juice Williams

Juice Williams
Juice Williams at the 2007 Fighting Illini Fan Appreciation Day
College	Illinois
Conference	Big 10
Sport	Football
Position	Quarterback
Jersey #	7
Class	Sophomore
Career	2006–present
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight	223 lb (101 kg)
Nationality	USA
Born	(1987-11-19) November 19, 1987 Chicago, Illinois
High school	Chicago Vocational Career Academy Chicago, IL

Isiah John "Juice" Williams (born November 19, 1987 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American football quarterback for the University of Illinois football team. In 2005, Williams was considered a top recruit for the quarterback position. [1] [2]

Personal

Williams is the son of Stanley and Anita Williams. He has two brothers and four sisters. Williams nearly died at birth due to his large size of 13 pounds and 8 ounces. He was a high school honor student and attended the same school as former Illini star Dick Butkus. [3] Williams was dubbed "Juice" by his grandmother because of his large size as a child. "I was kind of big … you know, big and juicy, I guess." [4]

College career

2006

Williams played in the first four games of the 2006 football season, splitting time with senior quarterback Tim Brasic. He threw his first collegiate touchdown pass (a 76-yarder to Rashard Mendenhall) in the third game of the year against Syracuse. In the 4th game of the season, Williams made his first collegiate start in a losing effort vs Iowa.

On September 30, 2006, Williams led the Illini on a game-winning 4th-quarter drive for a 39-yard field goal that gave the team a 23-20 upset victory over host Michigan State. Illinois came into the game as 26-point underdogs. It was the team's first conference victory since the 2004 season. Williams finished with 122 yards passing, one touchdown pass, and 103 yards rushing.

Illinois could not keep the momentum from the Michigan State game, losing 34-32 to Indiana on a last-second field goal. Williams led the Illini to a 25-7 lead with 2 touchdown passes, but Illinois ended up being outscored 27-7 in the last 3 quarters. Three further losses would follow before Williams faced his toughest test yet against #1 ranked Ohio State. He was plagued by dropped passes by his receivers and split time with Brasic during the Illini's 17-10 loss. In the following game against Purdue, Williams had a good game on the ground (22 rushes, 145 yards), scoring his first collegiate rushing TD, but a bad day through the air (8-for-29 passing, 95 yards) in the Illini's 42-31 loss. The losing streak continued into the final game of the year, a 27-16 loss at the hands of Northwestern, where Williams completed only 4 of his 17 attempts for 65 yards, although he did rush for one touchdown.

Williams' play during his freshman year has shown great promise for both him and the Illini, who are in the middle of a rebuilding process led by coach Ron Zook. Washington, D.C. wide receiver, Arrelious Benn stated during his verbal commitment on ESPN U, that Williams and his style of play was one the many selling factors influencing his decision to attend Illinois.

2007

Williams was injured in the second quarter of the season opening loss to Mizzou. Williams showed improvement in his accuracy in the 3+ drives he was in, throwing 9 balls, 6 of which were caught for 59 yards. He was kept out of the second half for precautionary reasons. In the season's home opener vs Western Illinois, Williams threw for 123 yards, ran for 16 yards and a touchdown in the Illini's 21-0 victory. Williams improved upon his previous weeks performance throwing 18 passes, 13 of which were caught for 97 yards and a touchdown in a 41-20 win at Syracuse. He added a touchdown on the ground, running for 90 yards on 12 carries. Williams had a sloppy game in the Illini's 27-13 victory over Indiana. He threw 28 times with 13 of them being caught for 98 yards and 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions, Williams also ran for 32 yards on 11 carries. Williams' had a good first half in the Illini's 27-20 victory over Penn State Despite not completing a pass in the 2nd half he threw for 120 yards on 24 attempts, 11 of them caught one for a TD. Williams had a solid game vs 5th ranked Wisconsin. He threw the ball 19 times, 12 of which were caught for 121 yards and a TD, while also running the ball 14 times for 92 yards, in the Illini's 31-26 victory. Perhaps Williams' greatest game was his performance at Ohio Stadium versus the top ranked Buckeyes.

On November 10, 2007, Williams led Illinois to a 28-21 upset over Ohio State, its first win over a #1 ranked team since 1956.

Career Stats

Statistics up to date as of October 6, 2007. High School stats from Rivals.com. College Stats from ESPN.

Passing

Year	Team	Comps	Attempts	Yards	Average	Long	TDs	INTs
2005	Chicago Vocational Career Academy	72	128	1,841	25.5	--	22	3
High School Totals		72	128	1,841	25.5	--	22	3
2006	Illinois	103	261	1,489	5.7	76	9	9
2007	Illinois	67	122	618	5.1	31	5	5
College Totals		170	383	2,107	5.5	76	14	14

Rushing

Year	Team	Attempts	Yards	Average	Long	TDs
2005	Chicago Vocational Career Academy	66	1,441	21.8	--	17
High School Totals		66	1,441	21.8	--	17
2006	Illinois	154	576	3.7	45	2
2007	Illinois	59	278	4.7	24	2
College Totals		213	854	4.0	45	4

• 
  Juice lining up against Purdue on November 11, 2006

Juice likes jagerbombs

References