CHAPEL HILL — Beyond the usual fare of standard box scores, the analytics that measure advanced statistics put Javonte Williams of North Carolina at the head of an elite class, rating him as the most difficult running back to tackle in college football this season.
It’s an unofficial crown the quiet Williams wears modestly, belying the pad-cracking punch he administers, and a situation that has teammate Sam Howell always on the lookout, the Tar Heels quarterback seeking to take advantage of his unique perspective there at field level.
“It’s awesome,” Howell said. “Every time I hand off the ball, I definitely snap my head around to look and see how many yards he’s going to make. He’s going to put somebody on the ground every single time he has the ball in his hands.”
Williams is coming off another powerful effort during which he shed opposing defenders in abundance and delivered loads of productivity, as No. 15 North Carolina (4-1 overall, 4-1 league) prepares for Saturday’s Halloween night visit to Virginia (1-4, 1-4) in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
He ran for 160 yards and three touchdowns last week in helping to fuel the Tar Heels’ shredding of rival North Carolina State, marking the first time in five seasons that a North Carolina rusher has put together three straight 100-yard games. All the while, his 17 broken tackles against the Wolfpack — the most misses forced in any college game this season — served up the latest notice of his punishing capabilities.
“Javonte, he was running over people the whole entire game,” Howell said. “It just makes a statement to the type of team you are.”
The numbers have become prodigious and the company exclusive for Williams, the junior who technically backs up starter Michael Carter, while taking nothing of a backseat. Williams’ 12 touchdowns through five games — 10 rushing and two receiving — rank second nationally behind only the 14-touchdown total of Alabama standout Najee Harris.
Williams is one of two players, along with Clemson star Travis Etienne, to have reached 500 rushing yards and 200 receiving yards on the season. Inspiring stuff to consider, particularly with Williams transforming from lightly pursued high school recruit to situational runner early on in college to known commodity now.
“I’m amazed,” said coach Mack Brown, in the second season of his second stint at North Carolina. “When we got here, he was a short-yardage and goal-line guy kind of the year before, and we all thought he was good, but not this. I mean, he just continues to get better.
“I think the thing I’ve seen him improve the most is explosive power. I mean, he gets from here to there and he’s so powerful and he runs so low to the ground, and he’s got such big, strong thighs that he makes a lot of people miss tackles every game. And some of them that try to tackle him, he just punishes them.”
Williams supplies the thunder to the speedy Carter’s lightning in the Tar Heels’ double-barreled backfield. They’re the only pair of teammates in the country averaging more than 100 rushing yards per game, Carter eighth nationally and second in the ACC with 116.8 yards per game, and Williams 10th nationally and fourth in the ACC with 112.4 yards per game.
Williams’ 41 broken tackles this season are the most of any runner in the bowl subdivision, and the leading figure by a healthy margin on Auburn’s Tank Bigsby and Alabama’s Harris, who are tied for second with 30 broken tackles.
What makes the 5-foot-10, 220-pound Williams such an imposing load for defenders? He said he has honed a connection with the North Carolina offensive line while growing his confidence. As for the collisions he routinely conquers, Williams said “they usually bounce off me” when he’s able to keep his pads low as opposing contact arrives.
“Low center of gravity,” North Carolina defensive back Don Chapman said. “He stays low, he’s a big body, and he runs hard every play. So having to tackle that every time is just really difficult.”
Take, for example, the 5-yard touchdown rumble delivered by Williams last week, as the Tar Heels were turning their 17-7 halftime lead on N.C. State into a 38-7 cushion by the end of the third quarter.
That hefty run featured Williams at his tackle-breaking best. He darted through a grabbing try by N.C. State defensive back Devan Boykin, then plowed over Wolfpack defensive back Jakeen Harris and his own blocker, tight end Garrett Walston. He reached the end zone on his feet, with a trail of bodies littering the ground in his wake.
“I’d rather juke, but I guess the running over, it just happens,” Williams said. “It’s exciting. It gives everybody confidence, even the defense. You can see them on the sideline cheering. That just gives everybody a boost and it helps us play a whole lot better.”
Williams wasn’t done. His 27-yard touchdown scamper 49 seconds into the fourth quarter last week moved the Tar Heels’ lead to 45-14, and their eventual 48-21 defeat of N.C. State represented the program’s largest margin of victory against a ranked opponent in 19 years.
Quite an efficient afternoon of work crammed into three quarters. Brown pulled North Carolina’s starters for the day in the first minute of the fourth quarter, after Williams’ third touchdown of the game.
And another resounding statement on the whole for Williams, who mostly went overlooked in recruiting. He had received an offer from East Carolina and interest from other schools such as Elon, before former North Carolina coach Larry Fedora watched him rip off 207 rushing yards and two touchdowns in December 2017 at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill.
That performance propelled Wallace-Rose Hill High School to its fourth straight state title, and ultimately landed Williams with the Tar Heels.
“It’s a huge blessing we have offensively,” Howell said, “because he’s going to get so many more yards than the yards that are actually blocked for. We might run ‘power’ and the play might be blocked for 5 or 6 yards, but he’s going to get 10.
“He just does a really good job of running after contact. It’s going to take multiple guys to bring him down. That’s why he’s one of the best, if not the best running back in the country. So we’re definitely blessed to have him here.”
This article originally appeared on Times-News: Tackling dummies: UNC back Williams plows defenders with power running
