Q & A: Is QB commit Jarren Williams solid after trips to Louisville and UK?
Perhaps the biggest recruiting story of the college football weekend in the Commonwealth was UK quarterback commitment Jarren Williams visiting both Kentucky and Louisville.
Read this question and answer session between Cats Illustrated and the fast-rising 2018 quarterback from Lawrenceville (Ga.) Central Gwinnett.
This is Williams' first year quarterbacking the Central Gwinnett program and while the team lost their first three games the Kentucky commit has started to put up huge numbers, and he piloted the squad to their first dramatic victory in overtime two weekends ago.
Cats Illustrated: Start by telling us about your trip to Kentucky for the New Mexico State game. How was your overall experience in Lexington?
Jarren Williams: I actually enjoyed it. It was great watching them, going up there and seeing them play. I got to watch the offense a little bit more and I got to see what's in store. I also got to talk to the coaches even more and I even met a lot of the players. It was really cool bonding with those guys.
Cats Illustrated: Who were the players you spoke with the most and what did you talk about when you were with them?
Williams: Stephen Johnson and Landon (Young). Those were the two I talked to off the top of my head. We were really just getting to know each other.
Cats Illustrated: What did you think about how Stephen played in his first extensive action?
Williams: I think he did great. I was watching him and I was real impressed. He really did his thing. I was kinda proud of him.
Link: JUCO defensive end Brandon Henderson talks about recent interest from UK
Premium link: Read Monday's football recruiting notes and updates at the House of Blue
Cats Illustrated: How would you say your game compares to him? You're obviously more filled out than he is but you can both throw and run and a lot of people would say you're both dual threats. Do you see a lot of similarities or more differences?
Williams: He has a great game but I don't really compare myself to anybody. I don't really call myself a dual-threat. I just say I'm a pocket passer who can run.
Cats Illustrated: Which coaches did you talk to the most at Kentucky and what was their message to you?
Williams: I talked to Coach (Darin) Hinshaw, Coach (Eddie) Gran and I talked to Coach (Mark) Stoops. We were just catching up. They were telling me they've been watching me and they're proud of me. They told me to keep up the hard work. We were just talking. I met their families and that was pretty much it. I enjoyed it.
Cats Illustrated: Most people who follow the program expected or at least wanted Kentucky to be 2-1 at this point. In spite of being maybe a game behind that, do you still feel good about the direction of the program or has your opinion changed?
Williams: Yeah, I feel like Coach Stoops and the coaching staff there will get it cleaned up. I'm not really worried. They'll put the players where they need to be to succeed.
Cats Illustrated: When you committed you said you were solid and even after Hinshaw told you to make sure you were going to be solid, you still wanted to commit. Even given that, how important will it be for you to see progress from Kentucky over the rest of the year, in terms of feeling good about your commitment?
Williams: I mean, I would love to see progress. It would be great to see them make progress. But I feel like even if they don't have the best season this year I'm just ready to come in and compete. I'll be ready to come in and try to turn it around, even if that's the case.
Cats Illustrated: Based on your social media it looked like you left Louisville a little bit early to go to the Kentucky game. How would you describe your experience at Louisville for the time you were there?
Williams: Yeah, that's right. I just went up there and left at halftime. I just wanted to watch Lamar Jackson and Deondre Francois, two great quarterbacks I look up to. I just wanted to watch those guys play the game to see the things they do because I know I can learn from things like that.
Cats Illustrated: Were you impressed by the atmosphere at Louisville?
Williams: Yeah, I was.
Cats Illustrated: You're still saying you're solid with Kentucky, but did the Louisville coaches talk to you a lot and try to recruit you much while you were there?
Williams: Yeah, they did. I told them I'm pretty solid right now. But you never know what could happen.
Cats Illustrated: You and your high school teammates got your first win recently and you're putting up huge numbers lately. What do you think has started to click that's caused your production and success to take off?
Williams: You know, that's just me being comfortable with the guys. We're starting to get a feel for each other and we're on the same page. I feel like we're still not where we need to be. There are still things we can clean up but we're still going to get better.