USC commit Andrew Williams proves City still has

It was 7 a.m., and Fremont High’s Andrew Williams was sleeping at his grandmother’s home in South Los Angeles when she woke him up to inform him a USC soccer coach needed to converse to him on her cellphone before he went to college.

Williams will never neglect that second on Feb. 12. Defensive line coach Eric Henderson was calling to formally offer him a scholarship to play for the Trojans.

“You don’t believe it until you see it,” he mentioned. “When he told me in his tone and how serious he was, I knew it was real. It was destiny calling. It took me a couple hours to reflect what was going on. I was stunned.”

By lunch time in the college quad, while surrounded by associates and classmates, the 6-foot-5, 220-pound Williams was calling Henderson to inform him, “I’m ready to become a Trojan.”

Henderson replied, “Hold on. I have someone who wants to speak to you.”

Coach Lincoln Riley joined the known as.

“He said, ‘We’re so excited to have you here.’ It was genuine,” he mentioned.

Williams was so unknown in the recruiting world before committing to USC final February that he mentioned, “I wasn’t mentioned by any recruiting sites. I had no stars. Honestly it didn’t make me feel any different. I was the same player before the stars and without the stars. Most people still don’t know about me.”

He mentioned a three-touchdown, 10-tackle efficiency as a junior against L.A. Jordan final fall while taking part in fullback, defensive finish and receiver caught the eye of Colorado State assistant Chad Savage, who later joined USC as an assistant.

Recruiting gamers from interior metropolis Los Angeles used to be a precedence for USC and UCLA. Fremont grad Ricky Bell, a star working back for USC, has his title on the Pathfinders’ stadium. Fremont grad Mark Bradford was a star receiver at Stanford. Crenshaw has despatched quite a few gamers to USC and UCLA. Dorsey’s head coach, Stafon Johnson, was a standout working back for the Trojans.

But a drop in expertise in the City Section has made figuring out potential success tales more troublesome. Williams, who has a 3.8 grade level average and plans to graduate in December, mentioned he hopes to be half of the beginning of a rebirth in championing gamers from the interior metropolis.

“I’m comfortable with people looking up to me,” he mentioned. “Somebody in the city is actually doing it. Just as I can do it, so can you.”

He doesn’t doubt the street forward stays troublesome.

“I feel I was one of the least privileged kids,” he mentioned. “To have the opportunity I’m doing now. … If I was another 6-5 kid that wasn’t from South Central, I would have been known. They would have shot me up the rankings. They don’t show that in the city I love. That’s cool. That’s for them to keep sleeping on us.”

Living 10 blocks from Fremont with his grandmother since he was 7, Williams mentioned he didn’t uncover soccer until his freshman 12 months. He mentioned he had an excessive amount of free time until reaching high college and discovering one thing to focus on.

“Have you heard the saying, ‘People get stuck and lost in the system?’ People become a product of their environment,” he mentioned. “I needed time to figure my way out. I came to a realization when I came to high school that something was going to have to happen.”

With his top, athleticism — he can dunk — and agility — he also ran observe — USC will watch him this fall to see whether or not his place might be tight finish or defensive finish. He’s a uncooked, intriguing prospect with tons of room to grow to be stronger.

First-year Fremont coach Derek Benton was the coach at Jordan final season when Williams had his large sport.

“He made his mark against me, then I knew and heard about him and it was one of the attractions coming here,” he mentioned. “I’m very impressed with Andrew as a person.”

All Williams needed was an alternative to get a degree in faculty. He desires to research communications and be taught about sports activities broadcasting. He mentioned he didn’t need to go to a number of faculties or search consideration from social media. The USC offer was enough.

“Football teaches you can’t expect results without work,” he mentioned. “People expect things in life, but they don’t put the work in. That’s a lesson football teaches you. It teaches unity, leadership, how to treat others.”

He has been rewarded for making good choices and surrounding himself with people who need to see him succeed. All he’s ever needed was a probability to show himself.

“I’m doing my thing,” he mentioned.