Leshon Williams Jr., RB, Iowa
Size:
Height: 5’10 | Weight: 208 lbs
Accomplishments:
All-Big Ten Honorable Mention (2023) • Three-star recruit
“Leshon Williams Jr. is a physical, downhill runner who won’t shy away from hits, does his best work in a gap/power scheme, and falls forward for extra yards.”
Strengths:
Powerful runner
Protects the football
Good vision
Contact balance
Straight-line movement
Concerns:
Athletic ability
Pass-protection technique
Average burst/speed
Breaking tackles
Film Analysis:
Leshon Williams Jr. led the Iowa Hawkeye backfield and started seven games in his junior year. It was a breakout season for Williams with his first 100-yard rushing game while racking up 871 yards in a three-back backfield. Williams was a bright spot in an anemic Iowa offense, showcasing powerful runs, sound decision-making, and not turning the football over. He’ll enter his senior season with tons of confidence built up.
Williams is a north-south runner who does his best work with room to get up to speed, where he can make subtle cuts and head for daylight. He has good vision behind a work-in-progress offensive line where he needed to make them right more often than not. Williams runs behind his shoulder pads and has powerful legs to stay upright and fall forward through contact for extra yards. He shows quick feet in a phone booth, and when he gets up to speed, they allow him to make sharp, narrow cuts in space.
When defenders are in the backfield, Williams struggles to carve out yards due to his inability to make quick, athletic movements behind the line of scrimmage. He struggles to get to the edge with average burst, which impacts the yards he can get even while running downhill. Williams lacks the athleticism required to consistently create broken or missed tackles, often falling forward instead of breaking a tackle and gaining more. Williams isn’t an impactful receiving threat and needs work on the technical aspects of pass protection to be trusted on third down.
In conclusion, he is a good power/gap scheme fit and can be an impactful runner on first and second down with his vision, physical running style, and contact balance. Williams needs improvement to see the field on passing downs in the NFL.
Prospect Projection: Day 3 — Scheme Specific Contributor
Written By: Daniel Harms
Exposures: Nebraska (2023), Michigan (2023), Illinois (2023), Wisconsin (2023)
