After missing nearly all of the 2019 season, Deontai Williams made seven starts in 2020 and had a career-high 51 tackles, including four for loss and one sack. He also forced and recovered a fumble.
Nebraska’s secondary received a major boost Wednesday as senior safety Deontai Williams announced he will be back in 2021.
Posting on social media that he has “unfinished business” with the Huskers, Williams is set to return for a fourth season in Lincoln. Last year was his most productive as he received All-Big Ten honorable mention and finished with a career-high 51 tackles and four pass breakups. His strip sack that he recovered and returned for a touchdown was a turning point in the win over Penn State.
The hard-hitting 6-foot-1, 205-pounder started seven games in the fall, missing the first half against Northwestern after being ejected for targeting against Ohio State. He has started nine times in his 21-game Nebraska career, totaling 76 stops. He’s been consistently disruptive with two interceptions, three forced fumbles, two recovered fumbles and eight pass deflections.
Williams said late in the season he felt he could have performed better in games, citing footwork and tackling as areas to improve.
“It’s just stuff that I could fix, things that I could fix for myself just watching and learning,” Williams said. “This whole year has just been a learning experience for me from coming back from a year ago from my injuries.”
The safety suffered a serious shoulder injury in the first quarter of Nebraska’s 2019 opener and missed the rest of a season after he had earned a starting job in fall camp. He made an impact as a reserve the year before, perhaps most notably by forcing a fumble in the Huskers’ near upset of Ohio State.
Williams was the 10th of Nebraska’s 18 seniors to announce their intentions for next year and the second to take advantage of the extra year of eligibility, joining outside linebacker JoJo Domann. Deontai Williams also announced he'd return later Tuesday, and junior cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt also opted to return for another year instead of turning to the NFL.
Two more key decisions are still to come from NU defensive senior starters: Inside linebacker Will Honas and defensive lineman Ben Stille. If all stay, it means Nebraska’s 2021 starting defense could look almost identical to the 2020 unit with the exception of corner Dicaprio Bootle (going pro) and inside linebacker Collin Miller (retiring).
Williams will play his fourth season in Lincoln after originally arriving as part of Scott Frost's first class in 2018 from Jones County Junior College in Mississippi. The Jacksonville, Florida, native will play a sixth season of college football overall. Williams, who will turn 25 in October, is the son of Roosevelt Williams, who played two seasons in the NFL as a defensive back in 2002 and 2003.
In the run-up to the season, Deontai Williams said he still had “a lot to prove” to everyone, scouts included. He said then he wouldn’t make a decision on his future until after the year was finished.
Now the verdict is in — he’ll be back as a Husker.
“When you try to make a plan, it don’t plan out how you want it to be,” Williams said in the fall. “I give God my pathway to life.”
We have unfinished business Husker Nation 🎱#thegoodlife pic.twitter.com/98FiVQumek
— Deontai O. Williams (@IWILLSTILLRISE) January 13, 2021
Our best Husker football photos of 2020
An employee releases red balloons among the fan cutouts after Nebraska scored its first touchdown against Penn State.
Memorial Stadium was mostly empty for every Nebraska home game this season. Attendance was restricted to select family and friends of players, coaches and staff.
Luke McCaffrey throws a complete pass while getting hit by Penn State's Fred Hansard. McCaffrey is naturally right-handed.
Luke McCaffrey and Scott Frost celebrate their win over Penn State.
The ball floats between Myles Farmer and Penn State receiver Parker Washington, though Farmer was called for pass interference on this play.
A red balloon floats by Connor Culp as he waits to kick off after a touchdown against Illinois.
Cam Taylor-Britt saves a touchdown by hitting Illinois' Chase Brown just short of the end zone.
Dicaprio Bootle slides into the wall after Illinois' Josh Imatorbhebhe beat him for a touchdown catch.
Wyatt Liewer and Dedrick Mills celebrate Liewer's touchdown against Purdue. It was the walk-on receiver's first career touchdown.
Adrian Martinez completed 23 of 30 passes for 242 yards and a touchdown against Purdue. That was the second game he started after losing the job to Luke McCaffrey for two games.
Cam Taylor-Britt breaks up a pass intended for Purdue's David Bell. This acrobatic play helped seal the Husker win.
Adrian Martinez runs with Minnesota's Tyler Nubin hanging on behind. Martinez ran for a team-high 96 yards in that game, but the Huskers lost, 24-17.
Luke McCaffrey looks to throw a pass against Illinois. That was one of two games the redshirt freshman quarterback started.
Nebraska fans attempt to distract Iowa kicker Keith Duncan into missing a field goal. It didn't work, though. Duncan made four of five field goals in a 26-20 Hawkeye victory.
Austin Allen needed every inch of his 6-foot-8 frame to pull in this pass against Iowa. The junior tight end enjoyed a career-best season with 18 catches for 236 yards and a touchdown.
Nebraska safety Deontai Williams trips up Iowa receiver Tyler Goodson.
Wan'Dale Robinson scrambles for a loose ball against Minnesota's Jordan Howden and Justus Harris. The Huskers fumbled three times in that game and lost one.
There was more snow in the stands than people for Nebraska's game against Minnesota on Dec. 12.
Dedrick Mills stretches out for a touchdown against Northwestern. The senior running back finished the season with 396 rushing yards and three touchdowns but missed two full games, and most of a third, due to injury.
Luke McCaffrey is shoved out of bounds by Northwestern's Adetomiwa Adebawore. McCaffrey and Adrian Martinez shared time at quarterback in that game, then McCaffrey started the next two.
Luke McCaffrey is twisted up with Northwestern's Blake Gallagher.
Scott Frost, wearing a mask, walks on to the field with his team before the Northwestern game.
Luke McCaffrey stretches out for a snap against Penn State. Erratic snaps from center Cam Jurgens were a big problem at times during the season, though Jurgens got better later in the year.
Cam Taylor-Britt and Penn State's Jahan Dotson both go up for the ball in the end zone. The pass was incomplete.
Evan Bland
Evan Bland covers Nebraska football, baseball and other sports for The World-Herald. Follow him on Twitter @EvanBlandOWH.
