Family tradition
Like relatives before, Jayden Williams stars for Central Catholic
Jayden Williams is not the first member of the Williams family Tim McGorry has counted on in a championship game.
McGorry, the Central Catholic head coach, was the Vikings quarterback in 1998 when the Vikings won the PIAA Class 3A title. Chris Williams, Jayden’s father, was the starting left guard on offense. McGorry said he was probably the toughest teammate he has ever had.
“I’m almost positive he played against Strath-Haven in 1998 in the state semifinal with an ice pack on his shoulder because his shoulder was separated almost the entire game,” McGorry said. “He was as tough as they come, and Jayden is just like Chris his dad, Casey, Tommy Sr., Tommy Jr., Josh and Frog his grandfather ... any of them.
“I played with Casey, Tommy and Chris. Jayden’s got the same characteristics. He’s tough.”
Some might consider the Williams family the first family of CCHSfootball considering the many members who have worn green and gold over the years.
TomSr. and Franklin Williams, known as Frog, were both Central Catholic graduates and linebackers for CCHS and Penn State in the early 1970s.
Several decades later, TomSr.’s sons and CCHSstandouts— Tom Jr. and Casey — played at Penn State.
Even Jayden’s aunts, Kara and Nicole, were talented, championship-caliber athletes at Central who went on to play in college.
Former Central Catholic and Parkland football coach Jim Morgans is a brother-in-law to TomSr., and Froggy and an uncle to Tom Jr., Casey and Chris.
Football is a family tradition. So is toughness, and Jayden is the latest in the family to exhibit the mental focus and physical strength it takes to be a successful player.
Jayden Williams, a 6-foot, 215-pound senior, is the leading rusher in the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference with league highs of 124 carries and 857 yards for an average of 6.9 yards per attempt. He has scored 10 touchdowns.
He figures to be a workhorse on offense Thursday night when the Vikings try to win their first district title since 2012 whenthey play Northwestern Lehigh for the Class 4A at Whitehall High School. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:10 p.m.
“Jayden is extremely tough, physical, and he has a blue-collar attitude,” McGorry said. “He comes to work every day and doesn’t complain.”
Soft-spoken, Williams likes to let his game speak for itself. He gives all of the credit to his offensive line, which features John Fifield, David Platt, Michael McCambridge, AJ Colon, Chris Pez, John Ganchoso and tight end Christian Spugnardi.
“The line has done a tremendous job,” Williams said. “They bring the energy in practice and in the games. I have to give it to them.”
But it is Williams who brings a combination of power and speed. He doesn’t like to talk about himself but describes himself as a downhill runner who tries to get as many yards as he can after first contact.
Because of the limited schedule Central Catholic has played, Williams has not had the opportunity to showcase everything he can do.
The game against Northwestern Lehigh might be his best chance to shine in the spotlight. The Tigers have the better record (7-1), they’re state-ranked (10th in Class 4A by Pennlive.com) and they’re looking for revenge after CCHS rallied for a 23-22 win in last year’s district semifinals.
Central ran the ball 42 times against Northwestern last year and may again try to use ball control, with Williams the point man.
“The thing I learned the most from my family is to be tough,” he said. “They’ve told me a lot of stories about toughness. Some of them amaze me. Mydad came back from broken ankles to play.
“They have all won championships. Now I would like to get mine.”
Grandfather Frog Williams is proud of him.
“Jayden was over at my house a lot when he was growing up and I always knew he had a lot of talent,” Frog said. “He had God-given ability, but he worked hard.
“To me, he’s the real deal. He’s excelling like a Williams.”
Grandpa’s best advice was something Jayden learned from his dad: Keep your eyes and ears open, but keep your mouth shut.
“What makes mehappy is that Jayden has a 3.8 GPA in school,” Frog said. “Right now, he only has one college offer. I don’t understand that, but hopefully he’s going to get more.”
Williams, though, is focused on his final high school game. He wants to go out a winner and show that Central’s rough times that included a 3-8 record in 2018 are in the past even as a talented crop of seniors are set to move on.
“We’re underdogs,” he said. “We’re fighters. We flipped the program last year and got to the district final [losing to Pottsville 34-7] and now we’re back again.”
‘They’ve seen the worst’: McGorry has more than 20 seniors on his roster and said “they’ve seen the worst of this program,” talking about a threewin 2018 season capped by a 50-13 loss to Northwestern in the district quartefinals.
“They’ve taken it upon themselves and become the driving force to bring the program back,” McGorry said. “Our seniors last year got it started and these guys have worked to finish the job.
“There’s no special X’s and O’s. It’s about accountability. It’s about the weight room. As coaches, we tried to establish a culture, but they bought into it and changed the program.”
As for Northwestern, McGorry has great respect for what the Tigers have been able to accomplish.
“They have a really explosive offense with a three-headed monster with [Justin] Holmes, [Nick] Henry and [Justin] Rodda,” he said. “You can’t totally stop them. You just hope to slow them down and we knew their coaches will have those kids playing their tails off. They’re going to compete as hard as they can.
“We have to be ready to take their best punch.”