One Less Day Til Football Season: No. 88, Quentin Williams

Yeah, I forgot to do this yesterday, but good news, you get two today! Finals week is killing my non-this stuff production, but next week should have stuff.

No. 88, Quentin Williams, DE, Pittsburgh, PA

Who he be: Quentin is a senior defensive end. Out of high school, Rivals had him as a tight end, and he picked up offers from crazy schools, like Oklahoma, Michigan State, Stanford, Virginia Tech, but he chose NU, where he could play alongside his brother, Nate. He's been a contributor ever since his redshirt campaign, playing in every single game in his Northwestern career. This past year was the best, as he recorded career highs in tackles and his first career sacks. (No fluky interceptions in non-conference games against hapless opponents, though, unlike his first two years.)

Oh, dude, remember Nate Williams?: Yeah, he was pretty good. Made, like, every tackle NU made for pretty much two seasons.

What's he up to now? So far as I can tell, not playing football.

Random song: "Electric Relaxation", A Tribe Called Quest. Ummm, Q-Tip? I'm running on vapors.

Other football Quentin Williamses: Freshman QB Quentin Williams plays for Bethune-Cookman. SWAAAAAAC.

How is Quentin's baseball career going?: Quentin was drafted in the 38th round by the Toronto Blue Jays out of high school and played two years of baseball at NU before quitting to focus on football, so, he isn't playing anymore.

Oh. How's the baseball team doing in his absence, though?: Guess.

No, just... just tell me: I'm going to make you guess.

Okay, okay. Second-to-last in the Big Ten?: You naive bastard.

Damn, that's cold: Yeah.

Body issues: Quentin's baseball profile page hasn't been updated in a few years, but still: he's listed at 230 pounds on his baseball player page, and 255 on his football player page. So either he a) gained and dropped 25 pounds per season b) has put on 25 pounds really fast or c) some logical explanation, but the other two are funnier.

Outlook for Quentin?: We have a pair of nice defensive ends returning, presumably with starting jobs, in Williams in Tyler Scott, as well as some younger talent in guys like Davon Custis. Williams actually had the better season last year, numbers-wise, even though I'd been sitting here thinking of Scott as the player with the more talent and upside. Either way, this is a critical unit: Northwestern's defense was pretty ramshackle last season and loses some of its better players, especially in the secondary. I get the sense teams will be looking to pick NU apart through the air. If Williams and Scott can get pressure on opposing QB's, that would go a long way to keeping teams checked in that department.