'True warrior' Kourt Williams can be key in revamped Ohio State secondary

COLUMBUS — Ohio State bullet Kourt Williams doesn’t view a torn ACL the same way other players see it.

The torn knee ligament, which can sideline even the best athletes for nearly an entire year, is an injury nobody wants to go through or rehab back from.

But now 10 months removed from the tear, the surgery and the setback that cost him a chance to break out as a freshman last fall, Williams can see what good a torn ACL can do.

How? How does an injury, which kept him out of action for an entire year of college, help a player who has never taken a collegiate snap get ahead of his peers once he returned to the field? Kourt Williams found a way. He decided to become a film addict.

“I needed to figure out something, because I wasn’t going to sulk and be sad,” Williams said. “I couldn’t play on the field. But that doesn’t mean that I still have to fall behind. Even if I’m not able to be out on the field physically, I can still find myself ahead of the curve mentally, emotionally, spiritually. So that’s kind of where I took it with that. … I’ve always been a hard worker, but honestly, I can say that the injury really took it took it to the next level.

“Most definitely a blessing in disguise. Probably one of the best things that could have happened to me.”

Williams has always viewed film study as a responsibility and a job as a football player. But his time off the field allowed him to dive deeper into studying tape than he’s ever gone.

It’s a part of his routine throughout his day, and it’s what is making him one of the breakout hybrid Bullet candidates this fall for the retooled Ohio State defense.

“I’m really a black and white kind of guy — I have my schedule, my routine that I do every day,” Williams said. “I’m an early bird. And I usually stay in late either to get some more treatment or watch film. I just take it really seriously. I have from Day One. And I will when I’m gone out of here. I just take all this very seriously. Day-to-day, I feel like if you want something, you have to be able to do anything and everything in your power to go get it. So make those sacrifices and those choices.

“And that’s what I feel like I’ve been doing. That’s what I’ll continue to do.”

What he is doing off the field for Ohio State might be the most impressive feat. But Williams has been categorized on the field by teammates and coaches as a diligent, hard-working grinder who will do anything to find a spot in the defense.

“He’s stacking his days,” fellow Bullet Craig Young said. “He’s getting better. He’s getting very strong. He’s getting faster. Kourt Williams is going to be absolutely the best. Like, he’s going to be the best probably in a Big Ten one day. He’s coming quick. He’s not far behind. He’s still working. He’s going to be all right.

“Kourt Williams is definitely going to be all right. He’s a warrior. A true warrior.”

He’s already proving just 10 months removed from his injury that he can become a key for the Silver Bullets renaissance after an abysmal pass defense last fall. In the new Bullet role Ohio State will deploy, Williams will be tasked with playing in the box against the run and playing in space to defend the pass.

It’s not an easy task. But Williams has proven to be anything but normal — on the field, in the film room and on the training table. Now back at practice with the Buckeyes, he’s showing he is versatile enough, athletic enough and healthy enough to be a star.

“I was just trying to get my feet wet [early in camp],” Williams said. “Not playing football for about a year, just trying to get the rust off. That’s why I study film so much, because I knew when I stepped back on the field, I didn’t want to be behind in any way. My coaches know what I can do. I know what I can do, my teammates know what I can do. It was really just about getting my feet wet again, getting the rust off and just playing the game.”

Feet are wet. Rust is removed. After finding a silver lining in his injury, Kourt Williams is back on the field.

He doesn’t need to rely solely on binge-watching practice tape anymore. He can be on the field doing it himself.