Darrent Williams

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Darrent Williams
Darrent Williams.
Position(s): Cornerback	Jersey #(s): 27
Born: September 27, 1982(1982-09-27) Fort Worth, Texas
Died: January 1, 2007 (aged 24) Denver, Colorado
Career Information
Year(s): 2005–2006
NFL Draft: 2005 / Round: 2 / Pick: 56
College: Oklahoma State
Professional Teams
Denver Broncos (2005-2006)
Career Stats
Tackles	139
Interceptions	6
Touchdowns	2
Stats at NFL.com
Career Highlights and Awards
No notable achievements

Darrent Demarcus Williams (September 27, 1982 – January 1, 2007) was an American football player for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League. Williams was also the owner and CEO of independent record label RYNO Entertainment in Fort Worth, Texas.

Contents 1 High school 2 College 3 NFL 4 Death 4.1 Aftermath 5 References 6 External links

[edit] High school

Born and raised in Fort Worth, Williams attended O.D. Wyatt High School, where he played cornerback and was also a punt returner. As a senior, he was named 7-4A Defensive Most Valuable Player after posting five interceptions that featured several long returns, including a best of 54 yards. As a punt returner, Williams averaged 30 yards per return with four touchdowns.

Williams received little recruiting attention during high school, receiving offers only from Texas Christian University, Louisiana Tech University and Oklahoma State University. Reportedly, he was the last player signed of the 2001 class, and was only signed after an OSU coach's wife urged her husband to evaluate his talent further, as she was his school counselor.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] College

Williams played college football for Oklahoma State University. He played ten games his first year, becoming a starter during the second half of the season. In Williams' freshman year, he returned two interceptions for touchdowns against Baylor. During the postgame press-conference, it was revealed that he had actually predicted he would do this in a statement to then head coach, Les Miles. As a sophomore, Williams started all of the team's thirteen games, recording 53 tackles and three interceptions, while breaking up 13 passes.

During his junior year, Williams continued to start for the Cowboys. He posted 66 tackles and six interceptions (third in the Big 12 Conference). He also broke up 17 passes. His junior-year performance earned him first-team All-Big 12 Conference honors.

Williams' played in only seven games in his last year at Oklahoma State. He missed the last three games because of injury and was limited before that because of an arm injury. Still, Williams totaled 21 tackles (18 solo), three pass breakups, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery, which he returned 53 yards. Williams finished his collegiate career tied for first place all-time in Division I college football in career interception returns for touchdowns. He had 11 career interceptions and scored 9 touchdowns on returns (5 interception returns, 3 punt returns and 1 blocked extra point return).

[edit] NFL

Williams was selected by the Denver Broncos in the second round (56th overall) in the 2005 NFL Draft. He recorded his first career interception on November 13, 2005 versus the Oakland Raiders. The Raiders were driving to score, when quarterback Kerry Collins attempted a pass to wide receiver Jerry Porter. Williams jumped the route, intercepted the ball and took it 82 yards for the touchdown. The Broncos won the game, 31-17.

Williams established himself as the Broncos' starting cornerback, recording 58 tackles and two interceptions. He also led the Broncos in punt and kick returns. His nine starts at cornerback in 2005 were the most for a Broncos rookie at that position since Louis Wright started 11 games in 1975. An injury kept Williams out of the Broncos' lineup for the last three games of the season. Williams was recognized as a first-team All-Rookie selection by Pro Football Weekly and the Pro Football Writers Association.^[1]

Williams played in 15 games during the 2006 season, recording 86 tackles (77 solo) and four interceptions (returning one for a touchdown), as well as serving as the team's primary punt returner. His last game was a season-ending home loss to the San Francisco 49ers. In that game, played mere hours before his death, Williams had three tackles and returned two punts for 50 yards before leaving the game with a shoulder injury late in the second half.^[2]

For his career, Williams had 1 sack, 2 forced fumbles, 6 interceptions and 2 touchdowns.^[1]

[edit] Death

On January 1, 2007, Williams was shot during a drive-by shooting, at approximately 2:10 A.M. Williams and two other passengers were shot when another vehicle pulled beside his rented Hummer H2 limousine in downtown Denver, Colorado. The shooting occurred near 11th Ave. and Speer Blvd. It happened less than 12 hours after the Broncos played their final game of the 2006 season against the San Francisco 49ers in Denver.^[3]

Williams had been attending a New Year's Eve party and birthday party held for and by Denver Nuggets player Kenyon Martin at the nightclub, "The Shelter." The Denver Police Department reported that the shooting was preceded by some type of altercation or argument at the nightclub between Crips gang members and other unknown patrons. A police spokesman said, "There was some confrontation between a group of people in the vehicle and a group at the nightclub."^[2][4] Williams was not involved in the altercation.

Williams was about to text message his mother before sustaining a single gunshot wound to the neck, killing him instantly, according to Robert Whitmore, chief medical examiner in the county coroner's office.^[5] After Williams was shot, he fell in the lap of Broncos teammate, Javon Walker. He was pronounced dead around 2:30 a.m. The two other passengers injured in the shooting, Brandon Flowers and Nicole Reindl, were both released from the hospital the day after the shooting.^[6]

[edit] Aftermath

Denver police impounded a vehicle in connection with the shooting. The suspected vehicle was registered to Brian Hicks, a 28-year-old Crips gang member, who was already incarcerated awaiting trial for attempted murder and drug charges. Other associates of Hicks were questioned as potential material witnesses to the Williams shooting. Rumors persist that it was a gang-related event; however, there hasn't been any concrete evidence to suggest that. Williams' family and teammates also say that the scenario was highly unlikely.

Williams was survived by his seven-year-old son, four-year-old daughter and 24-year-old girlfriend, all of whom live in Fort Worth, Texas. A memorial fund was set up in their name. Denver Nuggets stars, Carmelo Anthony and Kenyon Martin, who were with Williams at the nightclub the evening of the shooting, planned to honor their friend by possibly setting up a college fund for Williams' children.^[7] A fan-constructed memorial was formed on the southern wall of the fountain in front of Invesco Field at Mile High. Javon Walker decided to wear his hair in a "fro-hawk," in honor of Williams, who wore his hair in a similar way as a trademark.

On May 29, 2008, the Darrent Williams Memorial Teen Center was opened in Denver.^[8]

On May 30, 2008, the Rocky Mountain News published a story claiming that it had obtained a signed confession letter by Crips gang member Willie D. Clark, in which he admitted to firing the shots that killed Williams.^[9]

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Official Website
• Darrent Williams Memorial Site
• Broncos profile
• NFL.com profile
• The Official Darrent Williams Memorial MySpace Page
• Sports E-Cyclopedia's Memorium to Darrent Williams
• Rocky Mountain News report on Darrent Williams' death

Persondata
NAME	Williams, Darrent
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION	American football player
DATE OF BIRTH	September 27, 1982
PLACE OF BIRTH	Fort Worth, Texas, United States
DATE OF DEATH	January 1, 2007
PLACE OF DEATH	Denver, Colorado, United States