| Oklahoma S Roy Williams was named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year
as well as winning the Bronco Nagurski and Jim Thorpe Awards, but the soft-spoken star has
remained humble. With headphones draped around neck, Williams, a 6-0, 219-pounder, took
time at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis to answer questions about his best hit,
why he doesn’t get intimidated and why he has remained humble. Q: You say you
never followed the NFL and almost seem disenchanted with the league. Do you think teams
will hold that against you in their evaluations?
A: There is a lot of stuff that goes into this. I understand that, but I am not going
to change for nobody. I’m always going to stay level-headed and stay mellow.
That’s what has got me here so far. Why stop?
Q: You seem like you have to be different, less laid-back on the field?
A: No, when I strap it up, I handle my business, but off the field, I’m just a
regular human being.
Q: Do you have a mean streak when you perform?
A: I don’t know. You have to ask one of my previous teammates. I just go out there
and have a good time.
Q: A lot of players have signature plays. Yours would probably be against Texas when
your flying hit on Texas QB Chris Simms forced a key, game-clinching interception. Do you
ever watch that over and over or watch it a lot?
A: No, I don’t reflect on the past. I really don’t.
Q: You didn’t take the chance to say, ‘That was a pretty good play?’
A: I watched it in films. After we watched it in films, that was it. Or, I watched it
in Florida at the Jim Thorpe Awards too. That was just a play. You know, that was just a
play that needed to be made, and you’ve got to make.
Q: What kind of music are you listening to?
A: I got a little mixed CD with a little R&B on it.
Q: What do you think was your best hit over the past season?
A: Probably the hit in the A&M game.
Q: Can you describe it?
A: I was coming on a blitz. No, not even a blitz, I read the run. I felt it coming
before it happened. The receiver tried to crack me. I ran through the block, right through
him and made a two- or three-yard loss.
Q: Did you smear the blocker?
A: Pretty much. I took out the running back.
Q: Do you think your Texas play was your best though?
A: I really don’t know because I had a lot of good plays. I made some plays in
just about every game I played in. I kind of like that Nebraska play where I ran through a
big fullback who is supposed to be all-this and all-that on an option play. I had a lot of
pass deflections, caused a lot of interceptions against Texas Tech. But I did a lot of
things, and I just don’t reflect on it.
Q: Do you think you’ll be more interested in the NFL now that you’re in
it?
A: You think I’m going to change. Is that what you are asking? No, I’m not
going to change.
Q: But will you become an NFL fan when you are a player?
A: I don’t know. It’s hard to tell.
Q: It doesn’t seem like you are too intimidated by any of the players you lined
up against in college. Will there be anybody you line up against on Sundays that might be
intimidating?
A: Nah. Honestly, probably (Pittsburgh RB) Jerome Bettis. He is a big boy. And probably
(Titans RB) Eddie George. He kind of runs like (former San Francisco RB) Roger Craig, with
that strong knee drive, but I’m not going to be intimidated by anybody. That’s
where you lose the battle before you even get on the field. So I’m not going to do
that.
Q: Has anybody been particularly influential in your life?
A: My mother. She’s the one that really got me started in football. My dad
didn’t think I was ready. My mom was the one who took me to sign up, snuck me in,
told me not to tell my dad. When I came in the house, she told me to tuck my jersey under
my little jacket I had and run upstairs and keep it my business. When my dad found out, he
was real hesitant about it. But my mom was there. She backed me up.
Q: How old were you?
A: Eight.
Q: Why didn’t your dad think you were ready?
A: I don’t know why. You can call him and ask him, but I don’t know why.
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