Photo by: Hardy Meredith | SFA Photography
Football Feature | On the Gridiron and on the Diamond
9/24/2018 5:47:00 PM | Football
Junior wide receiver Cody Williams balances both football and baseball at one of the highest levels in collegiate athletics
NACOGDOCHES, Texas – A two-sport NCAA Division I student-athlete. That is exactly who Cody Williams is. The junior wide receiver took to the field of Homer Bryce Stadium Saturday evening wearing the No. 16 jersey, an honor given annually to a Lumberjack football player who best exemplifies the traits of the late Cally Belcher.
Former Lumberjack football coach John Pearce called Belcher the strongest link and his teammates called him a football player's football player. Belcher, who was a two-time All-Southland Conference defensive back for SFA from 1991-93, collapsed and died on the field during spring practices prior to the start of the 1994 season.
The recipient of the 2018 Cally Belcher Award presented this past May at Stephen F. Austin athletics' yearly Champions Dinner, Williams was selected as the Lumberjack football player who best characterizes a desire to succeed with determination and a love of the game. As one can imagine, wearing the No. 16 jersey to honor Cally Belcher means a ton to Williams.
"I heard the Cally Belcher story the beginning of my freshman year," Williams said. "I feel very honored that the coaching staff thought highly of me resembling the characteristics of Cally. Being a competitor, having a love for the game, passionate and always a team-first type of guy."
Those traits that Williams possess have taken him to one of the highest levels in collegiate athletics in not one, but two sports. After playing solely football his freshman year in 2016, Williams joined the baseball program as a sophomore for the 2018 spring season.
"I've pretty much been playing both sports my whole life," Williams commented. "I started playing baseball when I was about four with my first year of tee-ball and played every year until I started playing football around third grade. That's when I started playing both sports and have been doing it every year of my life since then. It just felt natural to keep going."
Playing both sports at the collegiate level is something that Williams had in his mind throughout the football recruiting process and was always sure to let programs know he had aspirations of being a two-sport student-athlete. When it came to SFA, Williams had already made up his mind to continue his football career in Texas' oldest town before being contacted by baseball head coach Johnny Cardenas.
"When they contacted me, I let them know I had already accepted to come here for football," shared Williams. "I told them I was still interested in playing baseball as well, and we planned it out where I would start playing baseball my second year."
Used to competing on both the gridiron and baseball diamond throughout the year, Williams found out just how much he enjoyed playing both sports all the time.
"It was actually more of an adjustment just doing football my freshman year," stated Williams. "It was really the first time I've ever played just football for an entire year and not baseball or anything else. This past year felt like I was getting back to normal and how it's always been for me, playing mainly football in the summer and fall and then transitioning during winter break back into baseball."
Putting on shoulder pads and a helmet each Saturday throughout the fall is something that Williams wouldn't trade for the world. He cherishes getting the opportunity to play the sport he grew up watching and simply being a big fan of.
"It's always been a dream of mine to play college football at the highest level," remarked Williams. "I watch College GameDay still every Saturday. If I could only choose playing one in college, I would definitely have to say football."
Although football is a fall sport, the spring serves as the game's season to prepare physically with offseason workouts and practices. With baseball in full swing during the months of January-May, Williams' days in the spring are quite lengthy with multiple workout sessions and sometimes dual practices. Going from one sport to the other during that time of year is an experience that the average student-athlete does not get.
"I usually have the 6 a.m. football workouts and then go to class from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. or so," noted Williams. "Then I usually have to be at the baseball field at 2/2:30 p.m. for early work before practice, which lasts to about 5 or 6 o'clock. I then come back to campus, eat dinner and do some homework before repeating the day."
"I would go to football practice on Mondays during the spring this year," added Williams. "We would get out of baseball I think around 6 p.m. and football started at 7 p.m. I would just leave the baseball field, come to the fieldhouse, change and head right on down to football practice."
Hailing from Pearland, Texas, the same hometown of senior linebacker Ryan Woods and junior quarterback Jake Blumrick, Williams saw one of his older high school teammates succeed at SFA well before he made a decision to attend the university. A letter winner at Pearland High School, Williams shared the sideline with former Lumberjack safety Marlon Walls ('17) early in his prep career.
"Seeing Marlon come here and do great things got me more interested in SFA," Williams said. "During my junior year I started having contact with the football program. I came up for a visit and fell in love with it."
Although he has plenty of student-athlete experiences ahead of him, Williams has already had unforgettable moments while playing football and baseball at the college level. From his first time stepping onto the gridiron in a college football game with over 60,000 in attendance at Texas Tech to collecting his first collegiate hit at Southeastern Conference stalwart Texas A&M, Williams is thankful to be doing what he loves at the highest level and enjoys the thrill of competition. Off the field, Williams relishes in the friendships and bonds he makes with teammates.
"Baseball is more laid back when it comes to traveling because you have more free time," shared Williams. "I enjoy the trips with baseball because you get to hang out with the guys a lot more in the hotel. You're there for three or sometimes four nights and you really get to know your teammates."
The passion Williams has for both sports is evident in all he does as his dedication to succeed can be seen through his academics. A Southland All-Academic Team member in the classroom, Williams holds an impressive 3.69 grade point average while studying biology/pre-med. He was a 2018 Allstate American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Good Works Team® nominee, is a usual on the Southland Commissioner's Honor Roll and appeared on fall 2017 SFA President's List.
Williams started three games at wide receiver last fall and recorded 15 catches for 162 yards, averaging 10.8 yards per reception. He claimed at least one catch in seven different contests and had four receptions on two occasions. Through two games this season, Williams has a pair of catches.
On the baseball diamond this past spring, Williams provided depth to SFA's outfield by seeing action in 31 games and making nine starts. He finished his inaugural season of collegiate baseball with a .235 batting average, .395 on-base percentage and .265 slugging mark. Accumulating eight hits and nine walks, Williams claimed three RBI and reached home plate 13 times.
It is no doubt that Williams' hard work and dedication to both football and baseball, coupled with his commitment to doing the right thing on and off the field, will pay dividends on the gridiron and diamond in the coming seasons.
-SFA-
Former Lumberjack football coach John Pearce called Belcher the strongest link and his teammates called him a football player's football player. Belcher, who was a two-time All-Southland Conference defensive back for SFA from 1991-93, collapsed and died on the field during spring practices prior to the start of the 1994 season.
The recipient of the 2018 Cally Belcher Award presented this past May at Stephen F. Austin athletics' yearly Champions Dinner, Williams was selected as the Lumberjack football player who best characterizes a desire to succeed with determination and a love of the game. As one can imagine, wearing the No. 16 jersey to honor Cally Belcher means a ton to Williams.
"I heard the Cally Belcher story the beginning of my freshman year," Williams said. "I feel very honored that the coaching staff thought highly of me resembling the characteristics of Cally. Being a competitor, having a love for the game, passionate and always a team-first type of guy."
Those traits that Williams possess have taken him to one of the highest levels in collegiate athletics in not one, but two sports. After playing solely football his freshman year in 2016, Williams joined the baseball program as a sophomore for the 2018 spring season.
"I've pretty much been playing both sports my whole life," Williams commented. "I started playing baseball when I was about four with my first year of tee-ball and played every year until I started playing football around third grade. That's when I started playing both sports and have been doing it every year of my life since then. It just felt natural to keep going."
Playing both sports at the collegiate level is something that Williams had in his mind throughout the football recruiting process and was always sure to let programs know he had aspirations of being a two-sport student-athlete. When it came to SFA, Williams had already made up his mind to continue his football career in Texas' oldest town before being contacted by baseball head coach Johnny Cardenas.
"When they contacted me, I let them know I had already accepted to come here for football," shared Williams. "I told them I was still interested in playing baseball as well, and we planned it out where I would start playing baseball my second year."
Used to competing on both the gridiron and baseball diamond throughout the year, Williams found out just how much he enjoyed playing both sports all the time.
"It was actually more of an adjustment just doing football my freshman year," stated Williams. "It was really the first time I've ever played just football for an entire year and not baseball or anything else. This past year felt like I was getting back to normal and how it's always been for me, playing mainly football in the summer and fall and then transitioning during winter break back into baseball."
Putting on shoulder pads and a helmet each Saturday throughout the fall is something that Williams wouldn't trade for the world. He cherishes getting the opportunity to play the sport he grew up watching and simply being a big fan of.
"It's always been a dream of mine to play college football at the highest level," remarked Williams. "I watch College GameDay still every Saturday. If I could only choose playing one in college, I would definitely have to say football."
Although football is a fall sport, the spring serves as the game's season to prepare physically with offseason workouts and practices. With baseball in full swing during the months of January-May, Williams' days in the spring are quite lengthy with multiple workout sessions and sometimes dual practices. Going from one sport to the other during that time of year is an experience that the average student-athlete does not get.
"I usually have the 6 a.m. football workouts and then go to class from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. or so," noted Williams. "Then I usually have to be at the baseball field at 2/2:30 p.m. for early work before practice, which lasts to about 5 or 6 o'clock. I then come back to campus, eat dinner and do some homework before repeating the day."
"I would go to football practice on Mondays during the spring this year," added Williams. "We would get out of baseball I think around 6 p.m. and football started at 7 p.m. I would just leave the baseball field, come to the fieldhouse, change and head right on down to football practice."
Hailing from Pearland, Texas, the same hometown of senior linebacker Ryan Woods and junior quarterback Jake Blumrick, Williams saw one of his older high school teammates succeed at SFA well before he made a decision to attend the university. A letter winner at Pearland High School, Williams shared the sideline with former Lumberjack safety Marlon Walls ('17) early in his prep career.
"Seeing Marlon come here and do great things got me more interested in SFA," Williams said. "During my junior year I started having contact with the football program. I came up for a visit and fell in love with it."
Although he has plenty of student-athlete experiences ahead of him, Williams has already had unforgettable moments while playing football and baseball at the college level. From his first time stepping onto the gridiron in a college football game with over 60,000 in attendance at Texas Tech to collecting his first collegiate hit at Southeastern Conference stalwart Texas A&M, Williams is thankful to be doing what he loves at the highest level and enjoys the thrill of competition. Off the field, Williams relishes in the friendships and bonds he makes with teammates.
"Baseball is more laid back when it comes to traveling because you have more free time," shared Williams. "I enjoy the trips with baseball because you get to hang out with the guys a lot more in the hotel. You're there for three or sometimes four nights and you really get to know your teammates."
The passion Williams has for both sports is evident in all he does as his dedication to succeed can be seen through his academics. A Southland All-Academic Team member in the classroom, Williams holds an impressive 3.69 grade point average while studying biology/pre-med. He was a 2018 Allstate American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Good Works Team® nominee, is a usual on the Southland Commissioner's Honor Roll and appeared on fall 2017 SFA President's List.
Williams started three games at wide receiver last fall and recorded 15 catches for 162 yards, averaging 10.8 yards per reception. He claimed at least one catch in seven different contests and had four receptions on two occasions. Through two games this season, Williams has a pair of catches.
On the baseball diamond this past spring, Williams provided depth to SFA's outfield by seeing action in 31 games and making nine starts. He finished his inaugural season of collegiate baseball with a .235 batting average, .395 on-base percentage and .265 slugging mark. Accumulating eight hits and nine walks, Williams claimed three RBI and reached home plate 13 times.
It is no doubt that Williams' hard work and dedication to both football and baseball, coupled with his commitment to doing the right thing on and off the field, will pay dividends on the gridiron and diamond in the coming seasons.
-SFA-
Players Mentioned
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