Big 12 teams chasing DeSoto ATH

Junior to Watch: Patrick Williams

School: DeSoto, Texas

Position: Athlete

Size and speed: Williams is 6-foot-3, 195 pounds and has been clocked at 4.5 seconds in the 40-yard dash.

Honors: Williams earned first team all-district honors as a quarterback.

Statistics: Williams threw for 238 yards, rushed for 414 yards and had 50 yards receiving as a junior.

Favorite Schools: According to his coach, Dave Meadows, the usual suspects from the Big 12 have shown interest, but Oklahoma State is the only team that has talked to him at this point about offering a scholarship in the future.

Skinny: Early in the season, DeSoto, Texas, coach Dave Meadows was looking for a quarterback that could help the Eagles pass the ball and compliment his team’s ground-based attack. But something happened along the way – he had to put his best athlete, Patrick Williams, at quarterback to give the Eagles a more diverse attack. It was a move that Meadows will never regret.

That’s because Williams turned in one of the more memorable junior seasons in the Metroplex last season. And upon film review, he’s more than talented enough to be called one of the state’s top 25 prospects.

“He’s a hell of an athlete,” Meadows said. “We had the other quarterback in there because he could throw the ball. But our offense was just missing something. We couldn’t move the ball.”

But when Williams got under center, things changed dramatically.

“Patrick just competed better than anybody else on the field,” Meadows said. “He’s got a lot of confidence and when he goes under center something big always happens and his teammates believe in him. They look to him as a leader and he always comes through.”

Now the question is what position will he come through in college?

Is it quarterback, receiver, defensive back or all of the above?

“He’s a great receiver, but I don’t know if he’s a Division I quarterback,” Meadows said. “Well, maybe I shouldn’t say that. He might come back and make me eat my words. He’s been working really hard this spring on throwing the ball a lot better. He’ll be so much better at that this spring and summer, you can count on that.

“He could also be a physical cornerback. He’s got great hips and knows how to put himself into the right positions at the right time. He could even be a big physical safety, too.”

In other words, he can be whatever he wants to be. And that’s why a host of Big 12 teams are showing him early interest, but Meadows said he’ll know more specific teams after the spring evaluation period.

“I know for sure that Oklahoma State is really interested,” Meadows said. “They’re the only one that’s talked to me specifically about a scholarship in the future. I’m sure that’ll pick up. If you just take one good look at Patrick on film, you’ll know that he’s a great player.”

Williams is expected to compete today in the Texas Relays in Austin.

Meadows also said two of his linemen are also getting attention from the college coaches.

“Elris Anyaibe is a guy that’s probably as highly recruited as Patrick,” Meadows said. “He’s a 6-foot-3, 260-pounder with really good feet. He’s a great player.”

He also pointed out that Quinten Turner, a 6-3, 280 pound guard is also getting solid attention.