Tiger star was once a Sooner camper
Published: 11/28/2007 4:31 PM
Last Modified: 11/28/2007 4:31 PM
A terrific backstory to this weekend's Big 12 championship involves Missouri defensive tackle Lorenzo Williams. He has become an All-Big 12 pillar for an underappreciated unit. He also does for the Tigers' defense what Chase Daniel does for their offense. That is, he sets an emotional tone which those around him follow.
And nobody could be prouder than Oklahoma defensive coordinator Brent Venables. Let him explain...
"What a great kid. I remember him like it was yesterday. He was a linebacker (from Midwest City High School) who came to our camps a couple years. We knew all the while he was in our camp we weren't going to be able to offer him as a linebacker, because he didn't run quite well enough. He wasn't real tall, so you wondered how big he could actually get.
"Coach (Jackie) Shipp and I both loved him as a person, as one of us. His half-brother is (former OU basketball player) De'Angelo Alexander. So you wanted to kind of make it all work because it was such a natural fit... He was a 4.8 guy who weighed 235 pounds. He could have played for us, it's just when you make those decisions he didn't quite meet the measurables at the time."
Williams had enough for Missouri, though. And as he layered muscle onto his compact body, he became a fixture, then a star, at tackle. If the Sooners, remembering the Bomber who came to not only their camps but all their games, missed out, they could live with it. It seemed worth Williams' success.
"He has a million-dollar smile," Venables went on. "He's very humble, very respectful, with an incredible work ethic and a high-spirited, infectious attitude."
-- Guerin Emig
Written by
Guerin Emig
Sports Writer
