WATCH: Ricky Williams talks about his favorite memory while playing for Texas
There are few former Texas football players that earned the legendary status of the man they dubbed the “Texas Tornado” during his playing days in Austin. Former Longhorn legend Ricky Williams is one of the greatest running backs ever to play the game.
On Friday, the former Heisman Trophy winner jumped on the “Horns Up Podcast” on the BleavNetwork with Nick Kreider, Josh Fisher, and Alex Tassopoulos, to talk about his favorite memory when he played for Texas.
Check out the video below. You can also read the transcribed version of his quotes below.
“My freshman year, way back in 1995. The last year of the Southwest Conference. The end of the year we played in College Station for the last conference title. And going into the game, the Aggies were number six in the nation and they had the number one defense. And I was a little freshman fullback. I was scared. Oh my god. I was so scared going into that game, I thought I was gonna get destroyed,” Williams said.
“And somehow I ended up scoring a 22-yard touchdown on a draw early in the game and I ended up with 165 yards rushing and we won the game,” Williams said.
The former Heisman Trophy winner said he was even surprised with his final stat line. “It really was somehow. I surprised myself,” the Texas legend said.
Ricky Williams was an all-time great at the running back position
His football story began back at Texas, where he spent four seasons playing for the Longhorns under head coaches John Mackovic and Mack Brown. He’s the Big 12’s second all-time leading rusher, only behind another Texas player, Cedric Benson. Williams rushed for 6,279 yards and 27 touchdowns during his time in Austin and is considered a Longhorn legend.
During the 1998 season, Williams led the country with 2,124 yards and 25 touchdowns. His efforts won him the Heisman Trophy, being just the second Texas player to ever earn the award alongside Earl Campbell.
Williams was drafted by New Orleans in 1999 and played there for three seasons. The Saints decided to trade the running back to Miami, where Williams spent the majority of his career. He finished with 10,009 rushing yards and 66 touchdowns during his NFL career.
On3’s Griffin McVeigh also contributed to this article.