BATON ROUGE – LSU running back Josh Williams has been named a semifinalist for the Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year Award, the organization announced on Wednesday.
The Jason Witten Man of the Year Award is the first collegiate football honor to focus primarily on a player’s leadership, both on and off the field.
Williams, a senior from Houston, is among a group of 20 semifinalist for the prestigious award. Three finalists will be named on December 15 with the winner announced on February 15.
The 20 semifinalists include 17 seniors and three juniors. Williams is one of three semifinalists from the SEC as he’s joined by J.J. Weaver of Kentucky and Joe Milton III of Tennessee.
“It’s an honor to announce the semifinalists for the Collegiate Man of the Year,” said Witten. “This fantastic group of twenty young men are great student-athletes and perfect examples of what makes college football so great. They have demonstrated exceptional character and leadership, often while facing large challenges. They are great representatives for their schools and the game of football, and I commend all nominees for getting to this point.”
Williams, a former walk-on who not only earned a spot on the team but was awarded a scholarship, has played a key role in LSU’s success over the past three years. Last year, Williams led all LSU running backs in rushing yards with 532 and six touchdowns.
He was the recipient of LSU’s Percy Roberts Offensive Player of the Year Award in 2022.
Williams was a member of LSU’s 2019 national championship team and in his five years with the Tigers, he’s rushed for 888 yards and eight touchdowns.
In the classroom, Williams has earned SEC Academic Honor Roll status three times and he graduated from LSU in December of 2022 with a 3.4 grade point average in marketing. He’s also a member of LSU’s Omicron Delta Kappa Honor Society and is currently enrolled in the Flores MBA Program.
He gave the keynote address at LSU’s “Tribute” – a graduation exercise for student-athletes – last December.
Williams is LSU’s 2023 nominee for the William Campbell Trophy and the NFF National Scholar-Athlete Award. He’s also a candidate for the Wuerffel Trophy.
Off the field, Williams is a routine participant in community service endeavors. He’s a legacy member of Jack and Jill of America, an organization built on cultural awareness, educational development and volunteer service projects.
Last May, he was one of 11 LSU football players who studied abroad, travelling to Senegal for 10 days where the group learned about the culture of the Senegalese. The trip included an educational component as well as community service.