2018 Football Roster
Roster
Aeris Williams
- Position:
- RB
- Height:
- 6-1
- Weight:
- 215
- Class:
- Senior
- Hometown:
- West Point, MS
- High School/Previous School:
- West Point HS
CAREER: One of the elite running backs in the SEC during his career โฆ Rushed for 1,000+ yards as a junior โฆ Nicknamed โA-Trainโ or โTrainโ โฆ Turned into a dominant ground force late in 2016 and followed that up with an outstanding junior campaign โฆ Spent five years with the program โฆ Showcased outstanding vision and pass-blocking ability โฆ Played in 51 games with 17 starts โฆ Rushed for 2,557 yards on 498 carries and 16 touchdowns, averaging 5.1 yards per carry โฆ Logged eight career 100-yard rushing games and two multi-touchdown contests โฆ No QB-RB combo in MSU history topped the 100-yard rushing mark more than he and Nick Fitzgerald (six times) โฆ Arrived at MSU after a standout career at nearby West Point High School โฆ Graduated from MSU in December 2018 with a degree in industrial technology.
2018 SENIOR SEASON:ย Appeared in 12 games with two starts, rushing for 524 yards and three touchdowns on 85 attempts โฆ Averaged 6.2 yards per carry โฆ Hauled in nine receptions for 100 yards and one touchdown โฆ Topped the 100-yard rushing mark twice โฆ Recorded 17 runs of 10 or more yards, including three for 20 or more โฆ Longest run was 29 yards and longest catch was 27 โฆ Caught a 27-yard touchdown pass in the season opener vs. Stephen F. Austin (9/1) โฆ Rushed for 101 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries vs. Louisiana (9/15) โฆ Broke runs of 28, 17, 16 and 15 yards โฆ Rushed twice for 42 yards, including a 29-yard touchdown run, vs. Louisiana Tech (11/3) โฆ Ran for 104 yards on 15 carries vs. Arkansas (11/17) on Senior Day โฆ Put the finishing touches on a 35-3 win at Ole Miss (11/22) with a 1-yard touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter โฆ Finished the game with 64 rushing yards on 11 attempts.ย
2017 JUNIOR SEASON: Played in 13 games with 12 starts โฆ Did not start against Arkansas โฆ Became MSUโs first running back 1,000-yard rusher since Josh Robinson in 2014 โฆ Ranked sixth in the SEC in rushing, carrying it 236 times for 1,107 yards and six touchdowns โฆ Averaged 85.2 yards per game on the ground โฆ Also caught 16 passes for 142 yards โฆ Had four 100-yard rushing games โฆ Racked up 82 yards and a touchdown in season-opener start vs. Charleston Southern (9/2) โฆ Rushed for 107 yards on nine carries, averaging 11.9 yards per carry at Louisiana Tech (9/9) โฆ Season-high rushing output came the following week in big win against No. 11 LSU (9/16), carrying it 23 times for 146 yards โฆ Became the first MSU back with back-to-back 100-yard rushing games since 2014 โฆ Delivered a season-best 147 all-purpose yards against BYU (10/14), rushing for 114 yards and one touchdown on 23 carries and collected 33 yards through the air โฆ Also had 114 yards rushing in win against UMass (11/3) โฆ Tremendous game against top-ranked Alabama, rushing for 97 yards on 22 carries with two touchdowns โฆ Was his second career multi-score game and became the first running back with two rushing touchdowns against Alabama since Ohio Stateโs Ezekiel Elliott on Jan. 1, 2015 โฆ Both of Williamsโ scores against Bama occurred in the first half โฆ Rushed for 88 yards on 12 carries and opening the scoring in the TaxSlayer Bowl with a 5-yard touchdown run. ย ย ย
2016 SOPHOMORE SEASON: Emerged as the starting running back late in the year and thrived โฆ Started the final three games โ Arkansas, Ole Miss and the St. Petersburg Bowl โฆ Played in all 13 contests โฆ Rushed for 720 yards and four touchdowns โฆ Eclipsed the 100-yard mark twice โ vs. Texas A&M and at Ole Miss โฆ Ranked fifth in the SEC in rushing in the month of November, averaging 112.5 yards per a game โฆ Tallied his first rushing touchdown of the year at UMass (9/24) โฆ Carried it 21 times for 82 yards at BYU (10/14) โฆ Went over the 100-yard mark for the first time in his career with 24 carries for 140 yards and one touchdown in win over No. 4 Texas A&M (11/5) โฆ Delivered one of the most dominant running back performances in Egg Bowl history (11/26), rushing for a career-best 191 yards on 25 carries with two scores โฆ Was the highest yardage total by an MSU running back since Josh Robinson had 198 against Kentucky on Oct. 25, 2014 โฆ Averaged a career-best 7.6 yards per carry against Ole Miss and tallied his first career multi-touchdown game โฆ Carried it 12 times for 64 yards in the St. Petersburg Bowl (12/16).ย
2015 REDSHIRT FRESHMAN SEASON: Played in all 13 games in a reserve role โฆ Ranked fourth on the team in rushing with 206 yards on 40 carries and three touchdowns โฆ Scored his first career touchdown in the Northwestern State win, finishing with seven carries for 36 yards โฆ Ran the ball six times for 26 yards and a touchdown against Louisiana Tech (10/17), while also recording his first two career receptions โฆ Averaged 7.7 rushing yards on six carries in the victory at Missouri (11/5), finishing with a season-best 46 yards โฆ Rushed three times for 39 yards in the Belk Bowl (12/30), including a season-long 33-yard touchdown that gave MSU a 30-point lead in the fourth quarter.
2014 TRUE FRESHMAN SEASON: Did not play in any games and earned a redshirt as true freshman.
HIGH SCHOOL: A four-star recruit according to ESPN.com, Scout.com and 247Sports and a three-star prospect by Yahoo.com ... A three-year starter for head coach Chris Chambless โฆ Ranked as the 42nd-best running back in the country and the 11th-best recruit in Mississippi by ESPN.com ... The Mississippi Association of Coaches 5A Offensive Player of the Year as a senior ... A 2013 Clarion-Ledger Dandy Dozen selection who was also a member of The Mississippi Pressโ Fantastic 15 list of the stateโs top collegiate football prospects at the beginning of senior season ... Became the fourth Dandy Dozen player from West Point, joining Chris Washington (1989), Chris Jefferson (1990) and Michael Carr (2009) ... Took part in the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic ... A 2014 U.S. Army All-American Bowl nominee ... Finished just shy of the 4,000-yard rushing mark (3,994 yards) in prep career ... Gained 1,697 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns on 265 carries during senior year ... Registered nine receptions for 85 yards and a score during final campaign ... Selected as the WCBI-TV Offensive Player of the Year following senior year ... Against Center Hill, rushed for 252 yards and four touchdowns (32, 27, five and 15 yards) to help Green Wave to 69-41 victory ... Rushed for 1,519 yards as a junior with five touchdowns on 268 carries ... Added six receptions for 77 yards in 2012 ... A Columbus Dispatch All-Area Second-Team honoree as a junior, when the Green Wave advanced to the MHSAA 5A state semifinals ... Versus Hernando in 49-14 victory, ran for 112 yards and three scores (four, 10 and 15 yards) ... During sophomore season, rushed for 778 yards on 129 carries and contributed 12 scores ... Hauled in 13 passes for 250 yards and a pair of TDs as a sophomore.
PERSONAL: Born Aeris Lavontae Williams on Aug. 9, 1995, in Racine, Wis. โฆ Parents are Veronica and David โฆ Siblings are Calvin and Dahmarion โฆ Family lived in Racine, Wis., before moving to West Point โฆ Majoring in industrial technology โฆ Twitter handle is @aeris_williams.
WILLIAMSโ CAREER HIGHS
Rush Attempts: 25, at Ole Miss (11-26-16) ย
Rush Yards: 191, at Ole Miss (11-26-16) ย
Rush TD: 2 (twice), last vs. Alabama (11-11-17) ย
Long Rush: 59, at Louisiana Tech (9-9-17) ย
Receptions: 5, at Georgia (9-23-17) ย ย
Receiving Yards: 33, vs. BYU (10-14-17)ย
Receiving TD: 1, vs. Stephen F. Austin (9-1-18)
Long Reception: 28, at Louisiana Tech (9-9-17)ย
