Just like the backyard
Northwestern linebacker Nate Williams' biggest fan is his brother -- and teammate
On the first day their youth football team passed out pads in Pittsburgh, Nate and Quentin Williams would take them home, put 'em on, head out to their backyard and just run at each other.
"We'd have a lot of fun in the backyard," Nate said.
Today, Nate Williams is still running right at his opponent, but it's no longer his younger brother who has to take the brunt of his hits. These days, Williams, a Northwestern middle linebacker, is sprinting after Big Ten quarterbacks, running backs and receivers, and he often catches them.
In his six games this season -- he missed one game with an injury -- Williams is second on the Wildcats with 49 tackles (24 solo). He has also led the Wildcats in tackles in their past two games, matching his career high of 12 against Miami (Ohio), then tallying 11 against Michigan State.
Last week's performance against the Spartans especially impressed Northwestern linebackers coach Randy Bates.
"I think he made a step toward being a really very good Big Ten football player this past week," Bates said. "He was kind of thrown into it last year. He did a nice job of filling in. I think he's going from filling in to being one of our leaders. He understands where everyone is on the field. He's just out there playing."
Consistency has been the biggest factor for Williams this season. He believed he was off to a strong start early in the season, but he sprained his knee in Week 2 against Eastern Michigan and was derailed. He sat out against Syracuse the next week and had to miss some more practices because of the injury, and it's just in the past few games that he has been feeling like himself again.
Against Michigan State, his body and his mind were able.
"I think it was just reading plays and getting to be the places where I need to be," said Williams, who has 3.5 tackles for a loss and one interception this season. "It's about being in the right position to make plays and being in position to make bigger plays. I feel really comfortable out there."
It's a comfort that younger brother Quentin has been able to take notice of up close. Whenever Nate comes up with a big tackle, it's usually his brother who is among the first to congratulate him. Quentin is a redshirt freshman defensive end for the Wildcats.
"When my brother makes a play out there, I'm a little more amped up," Quentin said. "I always give him a pat on the butt when he makes a good play."
Nate was the driving force behind Quentin's coming to Northwestern. They were close growing up, then became even more so when their mother passed away while they were in high school.
"We're a lot closer than most brothers," Quentin said. "We have a small family, and it definitely holds together."
Their father, Jerry, doesn't miss an opportunity to watch his sons play. He makes the drive from Pittsburgh for every Northwestern home game.
Jerry has been a major part of the boys' football careers since they were young. He even used to reward them with money when they made positive plays. After each game, he would pass out dollar bills.
"My dad would say who got the most blocks, the most tackles," Quentin said. "It was always a competitive thing. I would get five bucks a game, and he would get one."
Just as neither of them is likely to agree who got the worst of the backyard pad sessions, Nate is positive his brother's dollar figures are off, too.
"That was never true," Nate said.
Scott Powers covers high school and college sports for ESPNChicago.com and can be reached at spowers@espnchicago.com.
