Sherman Williams

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Sherman Williams

Sherman Cedric Williams (born August 13, 1973 in Mobile, Mobile County) is a former Alabama Crimson Tide and Dallas Cowboys running back.

As a senior at Mattie T. Blount High School in Mobile County, Williams was the first running back in Alabama high school football history to rush for over 3,000 yards in a season. He led the Leopards to a Class 5A state title and was awarded player of the year and named to the All-State team. As a scholarship freshman on the 1991 Tide team he played in 8 games, accruing 108 yards and 2 touchdowns.

During Williams' sophomore season he ran for 299 yards on 64 carries on a running back roster led by Derrick Lassic, Chris Anderson, and David Palmer. He scored the first touchdown of the 1993 Sugar Bowl, helping cement the 1992 team as National Champions.

Anderson was injured early in the 1993 season and Williams took over as the starting running back. He answered with five straight 100-yard games on the way to a season total of 738 yards and 9 touchdowns. During his 1994 senior season, Williams became the fourth Alabama back to break 1,000 yards, with 1,341 (second only to Bobby Humphrey at the time). He was named to the All-Southeastern Conference team and to the All-American second team. His go-ahead touchdown catch in the final minute of the 1995 Citrus Bowl was depicted in the Daniel A. Moore painting, "The Winning Connection."

Williams finished his college career with 2,486 rushing yards (5th in school history), 535 carries (3rd in school history), 27 rushing touchdowns (4th in school history), along with 424 receiving yards and 2 receiving touchdowns. He gained fame for his signature celebration dance, the "Sherman Shake".

The Dallas Cowboys selected Williams with the 14th pick of the 2nd round in the 1995 NFL draft, as a back-up to running back Emmitt Smith. He ran for 205 yards with 1 touchdown on the 1995 team that won the Super Bowl. In 1996 he amassed 269 yards, and in 1997 he reached a career high of 468 rushing yards, but also fumbled five times.

The Cowboys signed running back Chris Warren in 1998 and subsequently released Williams from the roster. He was re-signed as an insurance back-up when Warren suffered a pre-season injury. As a special teams player Williams made 17 tackles while also seeing significant time on offense in at least a couple of games. In three NFL seasons he ran for a total of 1,162 yards with 4 touchdowns.

In 1999 Williams was signed by the Mobile Admirals of the Regional Football League. He led the team to a championship and was named its most valuable player. He was re-signed by the Cowboys during the pre-season, but released before regular play.

In December 2000 Williams was convicted in a federal court on three counts of conspiracy to distribute marijuana and pleaded guilty to passing counterfeit money. He was sentenced to serve 15 years and 8 months in prison, and was released in March 2014. He completed his bachelor's degree at Alabama in 2018, majoring in interdisciplinary studies with a concentration in community leadership. He took a job at Tameron Honda in Daphne, and partnered with former roommate David Palmer to operate a community assistance program for children. In 2015 he published a memoir entitled Crimson Cowboy: The Rise and Fall of a Three-Time Champion. He followed up two years later with a second volume, subtitled Peace Between The Lines.

References

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