Seeing Sam Williams achieve his NFL dreams serving as "inspiration" for Ole Miss DT Isaiah Iton's own goals
Last Friday Sam Williams got the call every football player wants to receive as he was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft.
Now, Isaiah Iton wants what his former Ole Miss teammate has and finds himself inspired and motivated.
The pair grew close during Williams final season last Fall, with Iton telling the Ole Miss Spirit previously that he picked up a “dog mentality” from the former Rebel defensive end.
With Williams now heading off to play on Sundays this fall in Dallas, Iton wants to mimic what Williams did as he begins his own path to the NFL.
“It’s inspiration seeing those guys be in the draft and be a first round, second round, third round pick,” said Iton, an exclusive NIL partner with the Ole Miss Spirit. “It is inspiration because I know that, like, if I attack the pro mindset and take care of my body and doing the things that (Williams) did will help myself as a player and as a person and probably give myself a better opportunity.”
The first step of getting that opportunity just concluded with the first set of spring practices without Williams on the field with Iton and the rest of the defense.
Knowing the void of replacing Williams is the largest task, but Iton is also part of a defensive line that appears to have continued that progression from last season, at least through five weeks of spring practices.
Iton only recorded one tackle during last month’s Grove Bowl to cap his spring, but the junior defensive tackle was happy with how he performed but also knows the work is not finished.
“I feel like my spring went pretty good,” Iton said. “I had a chance to get better. There’s still a lot more room for improvement and I’m still learning but I feel like it went pretty good for the most part.”
The defensive line received a lot of praise from head coach Lane Kiffin all the way through the rest of the defense as spring practices rolled on.
Anchored by Cedric Johnson, Jared Ivey, K.D. Hill, J.J. Pegues, Jamond Gordon and younger players like sophomores DeSanto Rollins and Demon Clowney, the ceiling is high for the defensive front in Iton’s eyes.
“We have a lot of depth and a lot of guys that can go,” Iton said. “It’s good that (defensive line) coach (Randall) Joyner is starting to trust everybody so he can put a lot of guys in. I feel we have a good defensive line. I just can’t wait to see what we do in the fall.
“I love what we got (in the defensive line) room. I wouldn’t change it for the world,” Iton said. “I like who we got. Even if we add more guys it’ll add more guys who can stir the pot. I love it. Good competition and everybody feed off each other to get better.”
