Warriors sign basketball leaper turned tight end
Jun. 21—With a 37-inch vertical jump, Travion Williams is making the leap from basketball player to the University of Hawaii football team.
With a 37-inch vertical jump, Travion Williams is making the leap from basketball player to the University of Hawaii football team.
Williams, who is 6 feet 5 and 230 pounds, accepted a scholarship offer from the Rainbow Warriors. Williams, who will compete at tight end, will join UH next month and have three years to play two seasons.
"It feels unreal, " Williams told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.
Williams was a five-position basketball player for Division II Cal State Stanislaus the past two seasons. At the urging of friends, Williams agreed to attend last week's Sacramento State-hosted Rising Stars football camp.
"The day before the camp, I bought cleats that night at about 10 p.m., " said Williams, who had not played football since he was 6 years old. "The next day, the first time ever putting the cleats on, I went to the camp and I did my thing."
With dozens of college coaches in attendance, Williams impressed with his footwork, physical play and one-on-one skills on routes. "There were a lot of (junior college ) players there, and I was catching the ball on them, " Williams said.
Four UH assistant coaches, including co-offensive coordinator Roman Sapolu, approached Williams, who began receiving on-the-spot offers from other schools. On Tuesday, Williams announced his commitment to the Warriors.
"I went from every day working on the court to going out on the field, from basketball shoes to cleats, in 24 hours, " Williams said.
Williams said he was told his build, agility and physical play were appealing to football recruiters.
Williams, who grew up in Southern California's Inland Empire, joined the Los Osos High basketball team as a sophomore. "I wasn't good at all, " he said of his initial practices. "With time, I got a little better."
As a junior, he could palm a basketball and dunk off 360-degree and windmill moves. "In high school, I had some ups, " he said of his vertical jump. "I kept getting bouncier in college."
This past basketball season, he defended all five positions. On offense, he mastered screen-and-roll plays and postups—skills that translate to a tight end's block-and-peel role. He was 13th among Division II players in offensive rebounding (3.4 per game ). He had more offensive boards than defensive rebounds.
"I don't want to toot my horn, but I have a knack for rebounding, knowing how to get to the ball, " he said. "A lot of my basketball translates to football. My hand work is pretty decent. I've got pretty good hands. I feel like a natural (tight end ). When I felt contact (in the camp ), I felt like I was at home."
