Running back, Kansas, 2018–⁠21

Pooka Williams Jr.

Number
No. 1
Height
5′10″
Weight
170 lb
Class (2021)
Junior
Hometown
New Orleans, LA
Born
Jun 19, 1999

Pooka Williams Jr. played running back at Kansas (2018–⁠21).

At a glance

Best season
1,109
Rushing yards, 2018 (Kansas, 3–⁠9)
Best game
190 yards
At Texas, week 8, 2019: No. 3 rushing game in FBS that week

Career highs

252rushing yards, career highat Oklahoma, 20182rushing touchdowns, career highfour times; last at Baylor, 20207catches, career highvs. TCU, 2018102receiving yards, career highvs. TCU, 20182receiving touchdowns, career highvs. TCU, 2018

Honors

Players of the year, conference and regional honors: Wikipedia’s lists (CC BY-SA), each linked from its honor.

Rushing

Rushing yards, season by season, with his team’s record
SeasonTeamCarYdsAvgTDLong
2018Kansas1601,1096.9772
2019Kansas2031,0425.1365
2020Kansas511963.8221
Career4142,3475.71272

Receiving

SeasonTeamRecYdsAvgTDLong
2018Kansas342948.6228
2019Kansas272147.9227
2020Kansas6315.2013
Career675398.0428

Returns

SeasonTeamKRYdsTD
2018Kansas112460
2020Kansas71971
Career184431

Season lines from CollegeFootballData, regular season and bowls.

On the roster

SeasonTeamNo.PosClassHtWt
2018Kansas1RBYr 1
2019Kansas1RBYr 2
2020Kansas1RBYr 3
2021Kansas1RBJr. (Yr 4)5′10″170

As each season’s roster listed the player (CollegeFootballData). Classes before the latest listing are counted back from it; “Yr 1” is the year on file where that count can’t place a season he played (a redshirt, transfer or 2020 year); height and weight as last listed.

Per play

SeasonTeamPlaysEPA/playPctileMedianTotalUsageAdj. rush
2018Kansas1780.3088th (n=300)0.1553.227%0.22
2019Kansas2290.1248th (n=287)0.1327.732%0.12
2020Kansas59-0.02––-1.222%0.10

Expected points added: how much the player’s plays moved the team’s expected score, per play and in total. Plays: total EPA divided by EPA per play, the plays the source credits to him (for a receiver roughly his catches and runs, not every target; for a passer, not every attempt), so it can differ from attempts plus carries. Percentile: against the position’s regulars that season across all divisions on file (quarterbacks with 150+ plays, backs 60+, receivers and tight ends 30+), with how many there were (n) and their median; a dash means too few plays to rank. A season in progress uses the full-season bar scaled by games played, never below 75 plays for quarterbacks, 30 for backs and 20 for receivers. The cohort grows or shrinks with the source’s coverage each season (2025 lists far more players), so compare percentiles rather than raw EPA across years. FCS seasons are marked. Usage: the share of the team’s plays the player was part of (shown from 20 plays). Adjusted pass and rush: EPA per play adjusted for the defenses faced (CollegeFootballData’s WEPA). From CollegeFootballData, 2013 on.

Game by game

2020 Kansas 4 games, 196 rushing yards, 2 TD
DateOpponentResultCarRush ydsRush TDRecRec ydsRec TD
Sep 12vs.Coastal CarolinaL 23–⁠3812670–––
Sep 26atBaylorL 14–⁠47147623240
Oct 3vs.Oklahoma StateL 7–⁠4714320–––
Oct 17atWest VirginiaL 17–⁠3811210370
2019 Kansas 11 games, 1,042 rushing yards, 3 TD
DateOpponentResultCarRush ydsRush TDRecRec ydsRec TD
Sep 7vs.Coastal CarolinaL 7–⁠12229902100
Sep 13atBoston CollegeW 48–⁠24221211220
Sep 21vs.West VirginiaL 24–⁠29157602−20
Sep 28atTCUL 14–⁠5181203331
Oct 5vs.OklahomaL 20–⁠452313705200
Oct 19atTexasL 48–⁠502519024250
Oct 26vs.Texas TechW 37–⁠34216902240
Nov 2vs.Kansas StateL 10–⁠38146101170
Nov 16atOklahoma StateL 13–⁠3112260160
Nov 23atIowa StateL 31–⁠411915402521
Nov 30vs.BaylorL 6–⁠61229703270
2018 Kansas 11 games, 1,109 rushing yards, 7 TD
DateOpponentResultCarRush ydsRush TDRecRec ydsRec TD
Sep 8atCentral MichiganW 31–⁠7141252180
Sep 15vs.RutgersW 55–⁠14181581150
Sep 22atBaylorL 7–⁠2614890150
Sep 29vs.Oklahoma StateL 28–⁠48139716600
Oct 6atWest VirginiaL 22–⁠38126503160
Oct 20atTexas TechL 16–⁠48167003260
Oct 27vs.TCUW 27–⁠261133071022
Nov 3vs.Iowa StateL 3–⁠27175806420
Nov 10atKansas StateL 17–⁠2114590200
Nov 17atOklahomaL 40–⁠551525223180
Nov 23vs.TexasL 17–⁠241610311120

Box scores from CollegeFootballData, 2004 on. ✦ postseason; ★ a career high on file.

Before the draft

DrillCombine or pro day 2021
Height5′9⅝″
Weight170 lb
Arm length30⅞″
Hand size9¾″
40-yard dash4.46 s
Vertical jump31½″
Broad jump9′10″
Bench press4 reps
3-cone drill7.03 s
20-yard shuttle4.26 s

Combine or pro day: the source doesn’t say which. Combine and pro day results compiled by array-carpenter (nfl-draft-data).

In the NFL

1 season, 1 game with a stat; latest team: Cincinnati Bengals.

SeasonTeamGCarYdsTDRecRec yds
2021Cincinnati Bengals100000

Regular seasons, from nflverse (CC BY 4.0). G counts games in which the player recorded a stat.

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