Baton Rouge Native & Former NFL Player Jimmy Williams Dies at 43
Former NFL player Jimmy Williams, who had been a teacher and coach recently at Episcopal in Baton Rouge, died on Friday after an illness. He was 43.
The school made the announcement in a Tweet on Friday morning.
Williams has been working at the school for the last 11 years.
It's the same school where he starred in the 1990s on the gridiron. He parlayed those talents to Nashville and was a great collegiate player at Vanderbilt.
The cornerback would later be named as one of the 100 greatest Commodore players of the past 100 years based on fan voting.
Williams is one of three Vanderbilt players to have both a punt and kick return touchdown. In 2013, he was named an SEC Football Legend. He is still fifth in pogram history in kickoff return yards.
After four years with Vanderbilt, Williams was drafted in the sixth round in 2001 by the Buffalo Bills. However, he never played there and later signed with Seattle.
He would also spend time with San Francisco and Houston during his six years in the NFL. In 2005, Williams made his only Super Bowl appearance as a member of the Seahawks.
In 2006, he retired, finishing his NFL career with 151 tackles, three interceptions and 13 pass breakups. That same year Williams was inducted into the Hall of Fame at Episcopal High School.
After retiring from the NFL, Williams went back to Baton Rouge in 2011, returning to his high school alma mater as the defensive coordinator and assistant athletic director, while also teaching the students at Episcopal High School.
Williams is survived by his wife Chandra and their son Ace.