On February 5, 2014, I sat in a high school science classroom and watched on my laptop as Bryson Allen-Williams officially signed with Steve Spurrier and the Gamecocks. A Rivals250 linebacker prospect, Allen-Williams chose South Carolina over the likes of Alabama, Georgia, Florida and a host of other college football blue bloods.
He was the gem of the Gamecocks’ 2014 class — my class — a player many people expected to see lead one of the nation’s top-ranked defenses.
On the surface, the expectations were warranted. South Carolina was coming off back-to-back-to-back 11-win seasons and started the year ranked ninth in the country. Allen-Williams had entered the fray at seemingly the perfect time. Sure, the Gamecocks were losing their top defensive linemen and changing defensive coordinators, but the future looked bright upon Allen-Williams’ arrival.
But his five years as a Gamecock didn’t go as planned. From a freshman year wasted a by a poor scheme to two coaching changes and multiple injuries, Allen-Williams has been through more than his fair share of adversity. But through everything, his commitment to the Gamecock program never wavered and that has not been lost on his teammates.
“He’s taught me so much about being resilient,” quarterback Jake Bentley said. “He’s been through a lot since he’s been here and the way he’s responded each time.”
Allen-Williams came to South Carolina as a highly-touted linebacker, but was tasked with playing defensive end in Jon Hoke’s 3-4 system. Already a bit undersized, Allen-Williams struggled at a foreign position in his first year of SEC play.
When Lorenzo Ward took charge of the defense in 2015, Allen-Williams bounced between defensive end and outside linebacker, this time in a 4-3 system. South Carolina went 3-9 and Spurrier retired mid-season.
Through two years, it looked like Allen-Williams would be a wasted talent. A player with offers from nearly every school in the southeast was a backup at a position he wasn’t supposed to play under an interim coach to whom he never committed.
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But then circumstances changed. As Allen-Williams explained, new head coach Will Muschamp was a familiar face.
“Coach Muschamp was my first offer in high school,” Allen-Williams said. “It just felt like everything was finally starting to come back full circle. I made the decision to come to South Carolina … When Coach Muschamp came I could see the coaches changing to a program that I wanted to be a part of out of high school. Having him here and having the coaches and support staff he brought just makes being here and being a Gamecock all worthwhile.”
Immediately, Muschamp’s arrival signaled a turning point for Allen-Williams. As a junior, he started seven games, finishing the year with 75 tackles and 8.5 tackles for loss — both second on the team.
Things seemed to finally be going right until a shoulder injury derailed his senior season. But Allen-Williams kept working and returned this year as a redshirt senior, only to have his regular season cut short by an ankle injury.
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“He could have called it quits and said ‘my season’s over’ and just took it to the house,” Bentley said. “But he attacked his rehab. He did what he had to do to get back for this one game.”
While bowl games don’t mean as much to some players, Allen-Williams is eager to get back on the field.
“[This game] means the world to me,” Allen-Williams said. “Just being able to put on a South Carolina uniform one more time … I spent half a decade of my life here in Columbia … It means a lot to me. I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t have a bowl game.”
With one more chance to play for his team, Allen-Williams wants to leave a legacy that goes beyond his on-field play.
“I want [my teammates] to see every day the effort that I put in,” Allen-Williams said. “I want them to see how I study, how I learn, how I put extra time in. I want them to understand, look at that and learn a little bit from it … I didn’t have an older guy that took my under their wing and showed me how you’re supposed to be a college football player.”
Allen-Williams’ football future is uncertain. He knows he’s not a Day 1 or 2 draft pick but he feels he can contribute to an NFL team, even suggesting that his versatility lends itself well to the inside linebacker position.
However his NFL future shakes out, Allen-Williams will be a guy that fans and players alike will remember fondly; a player consistently dealt a poor hand that will still leave as one of the more productive players in recent school history.
Saturday’s Belk Bowl provides Allen-Williams an opportunity to end his collegiate career on his terms. The fact that it will come after a lengthy injury recovery just seems fitting.
