Leshon Williams steps up against West Virginia after Daniel Hishaw’s injury
With Kansas up 34-10 early in the fourth quarter, the game was essentially over. Another score would allow the Jayhawks to sub out the majority of the starters. Leshon Williams did just that.
Getting out of the game was at the front of Williams’ mind as he broke off a 63-yard touchdown to give himself and the rest of the starters a break. Williams finished with 168 yards and two touchdowns.
“We gotta finish, and it’s time for me to get out of the game, so I’m like, all right, this is my chance,” Williams said. “The only way I can get out of the game fast is if I go score. And I seen open space. I gotta give credit to the offensive line. They made a hole for me. And as you see, our receivers block hard down the field. And Bryson, he saved me at the end, so I got in the end zone.”
Williams’ performance was needed after Daniel Hishaw only received two carries. Lance Leipold said Hishaw had been dealing with some things in practice this week, and Kansas decided to shut him down.
“Leshon knew that this might be a game that he would have to step up more,” Leipold said. “I really thought he did. And you know, he runs physical. He does such a good job… a big-time game for him.”
While Williams may have known that he was going to play a bigger role on Saturday, his preparation throughout the week didn’t change. He always wants to go through practice with the same mindset.
You should always practice like you’re going to be that guy,” Williams said. “So it didn’t change anything in the way I practiced. Truthfully, just stay ready so you don’t gotta get ready.”
Williams’ first touchdown came late in the second quarter as Kansas extended its lead before halftime. The Jayhawks ran a fake speed option where Williams wheeled out of the backfield and was open for a 39-yard score. The play has been effective on multiple occasions for Kansas this season.
“I think it all start with just us selling the fake, getting the run game going a little bit,” Williams said. “JD being a threat, a lot of teams focused in on him, so they might just drop us on the fake.”
Kansas rushed for just 31 yards in its loss to Missouri two weeks ago. While the Jayhawks struggled to get the run game going early against West Virginia, Williams and the rest of the running backs opened things up. Kansas finished with 242 rushing yards, including 69 from Jalon Daniels.
“I feel like it was just coming down to us executing,” Leshon Williams said of the improvements in the run game. “We was this close on a lot of things last week, and I feel like this week we wanted to; we had a chip on our shoulder, and we just put it together.”
