On the first day of training camp this past offseason, UNC senior quarterback Marquise Williams said his goal was to win the ACC Player of the Year award.
After his first start of the season strayed from the plan just a bit, Williams received an outpouring of support from an elite group of his peers—something that helped him get his mind, and his play, back on track heading into this week’s game against North Carolina A&T.
“Some great quarterbacks called me this past weekend, just to talk and tell me to move on,” Williams told reporters after practice on Tuesday. “I was excited, you know, just to hear from some of those guys. Those guys come back and they just tell you ‘Hey man, just play the game. Play the game the way you know how to play it.’”
Among those great signal-callers giving Williams some wisdom were the last two Tar Heel starters at the position, Bryn Renner and T.J. Yates. Both of those players have spent time at the professional level, but another quarterback who spent time talking with Williams is someone who has, in recent years, given Williams a job at his summer Passing Camps as a counselor.
Peyton Manning has had his fair share of setbacks on his way to a Hall-of-Fame career. (AP Photo/Tom Gannam)
He also happens to be one of the best to ever do it.
“And that’s Peyton Manning,” Williams said. “He gave me a text and told me to give him a call, and I did.
“I felt like it was over, man (after the loss). And it just felt like [I’d] lost everything. But when I [made] that call it was just like, man I’m back at it.”
During the twenty minutes the two spent on the phone, Manning asked Williams if he knew who holds the record for most interceptions (28) thrown by an NFL rookie.
“I’d assume that’s you,” Williams told the future Hall-of-Famer.
“You’re right, I still hold that record,” Manning replied.
That kind of reassurance is invaluable for a college player, especially coming from someone who’s not only seen it all over the years—but also a man who’s thrown plenty of crucial picks in big moments, coming away stronger each time.
If Williams follows Manning and the other quarterbacks’ advice and plays “his game”, then there may be a little bit more running in his future. He talked during training camp about making more of an effort to protect his body, but both of his back-breaking interceptions in the end zone against South Carolina came as a result of hesitation.
“There was times I wanted to run, but I didn’t—and I forced it,” Williams said. “I just gotta go out and play my game. Those guys, like they called me and said, ‘Just go play your game man, do what you were taught to do, and what you’ve been learning how to do.’”
If Williams is running, he’s at his best–playing “his game” the way his quarterbacking peers have advised. (Photo: Daily Tar Heel)
It’s worth noting that Manning, Renner, and Yates can each relate to Williams in their own ways, something UNC head coach Larry Fedora is extremely appreciative of.
“That’s gotta be a tremendous help,” Fedora said. “I can only say so much, I didn’t play the position. That position is pretty special.”
He then pointed out the toughest aspect of being a quarterback, which Williams is dealing with right now–saying, “You get too much credit when you win, and too much blame when you lose.”
In his role as a leader of the team, Williams’ mood is something that can trickle down to the rest of the players. Other great quarterbacks know that struggle, which is what made them reach out to Williams.
Williams may end up on the other side of the phone one day, helping some young fresh-faced Tar Heel quarterback facing the same issues—which is why his coach wants to make one thing clear.
“He’s got a lot of respect out there, he’s got a lot of respect on this football team,” Fedora said. “He just didn’t play as well as he wanted to the other night. It happens.”
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