Eddie "E.J." Williams Jr. (born November 4, 2001)[1][2] is an American college football wide receiver for the Indiana Hoosiers. He previously played college football for the Clemson Tigers. A former top-100 recruit, he initially played at Central High School in his hometown of Phenix City, Alabama. After committing to Clemson over offers from 24 other NCAA Division I teams, he played 12 games in his freshman year in 2020 before injuries caused him to miss time during the next two season. Williams then transferred to Indiana where he began playing since 2023; he briefly entered the transfer portal in October 2024 before rejoining the program under coach Curt Cignetti two months later.
Williams was born in Phenix City, Alabama where he attended Central High School.[2][3] During his junior and senior seasons there, he recorded 84 receptions for 1,407 yards and 19 touchdowns, including 44 receptions, 739 yards and 11 touchdowns in his senior season alone.[2][3] He was selected to the Under Armour All-America Game after his senior year and was also named the Most Valuable Player from the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star game where he had 6 receptions for 98 yards.[3][2] He received 25 NCAA Division I offers, including from Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, LSU, and Tennessee, but ultimately committed to Clemson.[4][5]
In his freshman year, Williams played in 12 games, starting four, and recorded 24 receptions for 306 yards, both of which were fifth-highest on the team, along with 2 touchdowns.[2][6] He caught his first touchdown on a 5-yard pass from Trevor Lawrence to go with 3 receptions for 38 yards receiving in a 52–17 win against Pittsburgh.[7][8] Before the game that took place on Military Appreciation Day, Williams changed his jersey number from 6 to 39 to honor his father, Eddie, who was a sergeant first class in the U.S. Army; he died at the age of 39.[6] Clemson went 10–2 for the season and advanced to the 2020 ACC Championship Game, where they defeated Notre Dame 34–10. Williams had a career-high 80 yards off 4 receptions in that game; he scored his second touchdown of the season off a 33-yard pass from Lawrence.[2][9] The team played against Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl where they lost 49–28; Williams caught 5 passes for 45 yards.[2][10]
In Clemson's first game of the season against Georgia, Williams sustained a thumb injury in the 10–3 loss and was initially expected to miss 4–5 weeks.[11][12] However, Williams decided to postpone surgery on it and was cleared to play shortly afterward.[13][14][15] Williams caught 9 passes for 66 yards in his sophomore season while playing in eight games, starting two of them; he also made a tackle on special teams against NC State.[2] Head coach Dabo Swinney ruled Williams out for the Cheez-It Bowl against Iowa State after he contracted COVID-19.[16][17]
Williams missed spring practice prior to the 2022 season with a knee injury that he first sustained in 2021 and underwent an arthroscopy as a result.[18][19] He totaled 7 receptions for 70 yards in 242 offensive snaps as Clemson went 11–3 for the season.[2][20]
Williams committed to Indiana for the 2023 season, joining a receiver lineup which included Donaven McCulley and Cam Camper.[21][22][23] He played in eight games with three starts but missed four games due to a hand injury sustained against Indiana State in week 2.[24] Williams caught a two-point conversion pass attempt from Brendan Sorsby in a Week 11 matchup against Illinois to tie the game at 42–42.[25][26] Despite this, Indiana was defeated by a score of 48–45 in overtime.[26]
Williams sustained a hamstring injury prior to the season during fall camp practice.[24][27] He played in Indiana's Week 4 game against Charlotte, but did not have a reception.[25] He had a 37-yard reception from Kurtis Rourke against Northwestern and a 12-yard catch against Nebraska.[25] In October, Williams entered the transfer portal, stating "I made this decision because the team was perfectly fine without me in the game and I also want to have a chance at being able to continue my career at the professional level."[28][29] However, he decided to withdraw from the portal and return to Indiana two months later, redshirting for the rest of the year following surgery on an unknown injury.[30][31] He later stated, "I didn't even want to go into the portal to start with".[32]
Williams began his final year of eligibility[33] with a Week 2 win against Kennesaw State, where he caught an 8-yard touchdown pass from Fernando Mendoza. This was his first touchdown for Indiana and his first since 2020, and included in his 3 receptions for 27 yards.[25][34] This was preceded with a performance against Old Dominion in Week 1 where he had a team-leading 5 catches for 45 yards, including a 22-yard reception.[35][36] Williams then had 2 receptions for 27 yards, including a 18-yard catch, in a 73–0 blowout win against Indiana State.[37] He had 3 catches for 17 yards and a touchdown, which came from a 11-yard pass from Mendoza in a 63–10 blowout win against No. 9-ranked Illinois.[38][39] Williams then caught a lone 37-yard pass from Mendoza in a 20–15 win against Iowa to start the season 5–0 for the second consecutive year under second-year coach Curt Cignetti.[40][41]
Personal life
Williams was born to Eddie and Vontrelle Williams, both of whom served in the military.[7] His father was a U.S. Army veteran who held the title of sergeant first class. He died at the age of 39, when Williams was 8 years old.[7][42] He stated that his father influenced him into playing football, stating "He loved the game a lot. Every time I came home from school he was on the couch just getting home from work watching football and he really got me into the game at a young age."[42] His older sister, Kahlia Lawrence, played college basketball for the Mercer Bears and was selected 24th overall in the 2018 WNBA draft by the Minnesota Lynx; she is currently a graduate assistant for the Tulsa Golden Hurricane women's basketball team.[9][43] Williams and Lawrence were classmates when they previously lived in El Paso, Texas.[44] However, after their father's passing, the family moved to Columbus, Georgia where Williams began his football career later at Clemson.[45]
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