Gizmo Williams

Last updated

Gizmo Williams
No. 2
Born: (1962-05-31) May 31, 1962 (age 62)
Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.
Career information
CFL status American
Position(s) WR, PR, KR
Height5 ft 6 in (168 cm)
Weight185 lb (84 kg)
College East Carolina
Career history
As player
1985 Memphis Showboats
1986 Calgary Stampeders*
1986–1988 Edmonton Eskimos
1989 Philadelphia Eagles
1990–2000 Edmonton Eskimos
Career highlights and awards
CFL All-Star 1987, 1991–1994
CFL West All-Star 1987, 1988, 1991–1994, 1997
Honors2002 - Edmonton Eskimos Wall of Honour
Records Canadian Football League Records
Career stats

Henry Lee "Gizmo" Williams (born May 31, 1962) is an American former professional football kick returner and wide receiver. After his retirement at the end of the 2000 CFL season, Williams worked as a motivational speaker.

Contents

Born into an impoverished family, Williams was raised by his brother Edgar after the death of both his parents as a child, and, after Edgar's death, by an aunt. Despite his background, Williams was able to be a successful high school football player, and was able to enroll at East Carolina University. After graduating from East Carolina, Williams was signed by the Memphis Showboats of the United States Football League. While playing in Memphis, future Professional Football Hall of Famer Reggie White gave the shifty Williams the nickname "Gizmo", which would stick with him through his professional career.

Williams was released by the Showboats after one season in the USFL in 1985, and signed with the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League. With the exception of a half-season with the Philadelphia Eagles in 1989, Williams would play with the Eskimos for every CFL season from 1986 to 2000.

Standing a diminutive 5 feet 6 inches (168 cm), Williams was a prototypical Canadian football kick returner in many ways. He saw some success as a receiver, breaking 900 yards receiving on two occasions, but was best known for his work as a returner. Williams soon developed a trademark of doing a flip in the air after every score, which quickly became associated with Williams in the eyes of the fans. During his career with the Eskimos, Williams set more than 20 CFL records, and as of 2006 is still the league's all-time leader in both punt and kickoff return yardage, and holds the record for most kick return touchdowns with 31 (26 on punt returns, two on kickoff returns and three on missed field goal returns). Perhaps his most memorable was a 115-yard missed-field-goal return for a touchdown in the 1987 Grey Cup.

In 2002, Williams's #2 was put on the Edmonton Eskimos Wall of Honour. Four years later, Williams was inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame with a class that included former teammate and quarterback Matt Dunigan. [1] In November 2006 he was voted one of the CFL's Top 50 players (#25) of the league's modern era by Canadian sports network The Sports Network/TSN.

Williams has a family history of multiple sclerosis, which killed his mother in December 1969 when Williams was six, as well as seven of his ten siblings. [2] Williams's father died in a house fire at Christmas of 1970. [3]

As of 2017, he is a coach for the Jasper Place High School football senior team.[ needs update ][ citation needed ] [4]

See also

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References

  1. ↑ "'Gizmo' Williams highlights Canadian Football Hall of Fame class". Associated Press. September 29, 2006. Retrieved December 7, 2021.
  2. ↑ Posted, Kevin Mitchell (May 25, 2011). "May 2011: Gizmo's family stalked by MS". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Gizmo ran over obstacles to reach Hall of Fame". CFL.ca. September 29, 2006. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  4. ↑ Short, John (August 29, 2017). "John Short: Gizmo Williams takes on high school coaching position". Edmonton Sun. Retrieved November 7, 2023.
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