Hillside’s star running back content with baffling defenses, not hunting scholarships

Jimmyll Williams shuttered at the thought.

Hillside High’s multi-sport athlete sat for an interview at the head of a long table in a school conference room as the N.C. High School Athletic Association 4A playoffs continue. His top-seeded Hornets (13-0) face No. 12 seed Millbrook (12-1) at 7:30 p.m. Friday on the Hornets’ field, with the winner advancing to the East Regional final.

How, the running back was asked, would he feel if he wasn’t playing his senior season for the unbeaten football team?

“Of course, I’d feel sad because I’d be missing out on everything, but I’d still be giving the team great support,” Williams said. “This is about Hillside. It’s not about me. This is the 100th anniversary of our school. This is special. There is no selfishness on this team. It’s Hillside, Hillside, Hillside.”

Williams has played a vital role in the Hornet’s success as a 2,000-yard rusher, but the prospect of him skipping his senior football season was within the realm of possibility. At least, in this age of specialization, that is.

Williams’ first love was baseball. It was projected as his next level sport — college or the pro draft — as early as middle school. He had already given up a promising basketball career after his sophomore season due the overlapping seasons.

Williams, who doesn’t turn 18 years old until Sept. 4, 2023, played his first varsity baseball season as a 14-year-old freshman in the spring of 2020 (the pandemic shut down the season after five games).

Through three varsity seasons he’s primarily been an infielder, but he’s also played pitcher, catcher and as an outfielder. His junior season he batted .405 with 16 steals in 17 games. On the mound, he struck out 41 batters in 25 innings. He was invited to participate in national tournaments last summer in Arizona and Atlanta.

But it’s not just the personal satisfaction of Williams’ breakout football season. He says he would have missed the team camaraderie, too.

“I’ve been playing with a lot of these guys since middle school,” Williams said. “We know each other. That’s what makes practice and games so much fun. We’ve been watching each other grow and get better.”

Williams has progressed from a junior rushing for 639 yards with eight touchdowns in 11 games to this season with 2,258 yards and 23 touchdowns in 13 games to date. As a 5-foot-9, 185-pounder, he’s averaging 173.7 yards per game, and 11.5 per carry. The totals include 11 games topping 100 yards.

“I knew Jimmyll had it in him the whole time,” said Hillside’s veteran coach, Ray Harrison. “This year it has been his show. He has vision and patience. He can run, catch and he can block. He’s great on special teams. We can line him up at defensive back when we need to.”

There is a mystery to his season, though: His lack of Division I scholarship offers in football and baseball.

Harrison says he’s “baffled.” He compares him on a level with previous Hillside running backs to play for him who earned a Power Five scholarship.

Greg Little, a Hillside senior in 2006, played at North Carolina followed by eight NFL seasons as a wide receiver; Gary Douglas, a senior in 2007, Maryland; Desmond Scott, a senior in 2008, Duke; and Khris Francis, a senior in 2012, North Carolina.

“You can’t go wrong with a kid like Jimmyll,” Harrison said. “You can plug him into so many places. He’s a high-character kid. He’s the type of kid who can be a team captain in college.”

Hillside baseball coach Malcoum Green added “baffled is a good way” to describe his surprise Williams hasn’t attracted Division I baseball interest. He speculates Williams is among the high school recruits who have been impacted by the combination of the NCAA’s COVID exemptions allowing college athletes to play an extra year and the transfer portal. College coaches can opt for an experienced athlete in his 20s over a high school graduate.

“That’s true for all sports,” Green said. “We’ll see what happens after the early signing period. Jimmyll can be a steal for someone.”

But the “baffling” lack of interest in Williams revealed another characteristic. He hasn’t sulked in a way that jeopardized disrupting his production or team chemistry.

“I’m not thinking about scholarship offers,” he said. “I’m living in the moment and enjoying this season.”