Few athletes have the opportunity to compete in a Super Bowl. Far fewer play in three straight.
Fayetteville State and Jack Britt alum Joshua Williams is one of them.
After a third straight Super Bowl appearance and championship titles his first two seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs, Williams will be honored by Fayetteville State with a jersey retirement ceremony set for Homecoming 2025.
"Joshua Williams embodies the excellence, determination, and perseverance that define Fayetteville State University,” Chancellor Darrell T. Allison said in a university release. “His journey from FSU to the highest level of professional football is an inspiration to our students, alumni, and the entire HBCU community. As a two-time Super Bowl champion – all within his first three years in the league, he has brought immense pride to our institution."
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An All-CIAA cornerback for the Broncos, Williams was selected by the Chiefs in the fourth round of the 2022 NFL Draft with the 135th overall pick. He was the first Fayetteville State player to be drafted in nearly 50 years, joining James Godwin, an FSU Hall of Famer who was taken in the 16th round of the 1976 NFL Draft.
His first two professional seasons ended with Super Bowl championships as Kansas City defeated the Eagles and Niners in LVII and LVIII, respectively. Williams contributed to those seasons on defense and special teams, posting highlight picks, sacks and more plays as the Chiefs dominated. In Sunday's Super Bowl loss to Philadelphia, Williams assisted on a third-down tackle to force a punt and made a tackle on special teams.
He is one of only seven football players from Fayetteville to reach the Super Bowl, along with Pine Forest’s Jeff McCall (Oakland, 1984), Terry Sanford’s Tim Morrison (Washington, 1988), Seventy-First’s Harry Sydney (San Francisco, 1989-90), Douglas Byrd’s Brad Edwards (Washington, 1992), E.E. Smith’s Russell Davis (New York Giants, 2008) and Terry Sanford's Dwayne Allen (New England Patriots, 2019).
"I always give a real sincere thank you to everyone along the way," Williams told The Fayetteville Observer after his second Super Bowl. "I was just a normal kid in Fayetteville just like the rest of them. I just so happened to be the kid that blew up."
Despite his modest assessment, Williams' young career is nowhere near "normal." He's on a very short list of first- and second-year Super Bowl winners, and he was one of just 22 HBCU alums to make active NFL rosters this season.
"This is only the beginning for Joshua Williams as his legacy will continue to inspire generations of Broncos to dream big and achieve greatness," Allison said. "Joshua Williams has solidified his greatness in his own right in HBCU history and FSU is mighty proud to retire the No. 2 later this year.”
