VeeshanVault

You can’t understand how free I feel,” Williams told the Herald in a cell phone interview Saturday before boarding a plane in Hawaii and heading to Asia to begin several months of travel

Williams told the Herald his failed marijuana tests had a minor influence on his decision to retire, but was only one of many factors. It didn’t cause him to retire, he said, as much as reinforce his reasons for wanting to do so.

Austin American Statesman wrote: Some close to Williams not surprised by retirement

UT coach Mack Brown says running back talked about returning to school to finish his degree


Two weeks ago, Ricky Williams told an old Austin friend this would be his final season in the National Football League.

The star running back for the Miami Dolphins had said he was motivated to make 2004 the best season of his pro career.

"I thought he'd probably do that and ride off into the sunset," said John Bianco, who as media relations director for University of Texas athletics was at Williams' side almost daily during his Heisman Trophy campaign in 1998. "He felt better than he's ever felt before and he had been working hard. I know he wanted to leave in good health."

When word of Williams' sudden retirement -- one week before training camp -- became public Saturday night, Bianco was hardly shocked. The former Longhorn just decided to leave a year earlier than planned.

"My guess is that he wanted to play one more year for everybody else," Bianco said Sunday. "He wanted to help the team reach the Super Bowl. He wanted to be there for the fans. Then he probably stepped back and, in good health, realized the best years of his life are still ahead of him."

While Dolphins fans are understandably stunned that their best offensive player decided to retire, some who knew him best from his record-setting days in Austin saw it coming.

"This is something Ricky has thought about for a long time," Longhorns Coach Mack Brown said Saturday in a statement. "He always told me he couldn't wait until the time came when he could come back to school and finish his degree."

Williams, who turned 27 in May, informed Brown of his decision to quit football late last week.

"When he asked me how I would feel about his decision, I told him I would like him even if he had never played football," Brown said.

Bianco and Brown said Williams' health was a major factor in his decision. During their conversation, Williams told Bianco that no NFL running back has carried the football more than he has in the past two seasons.

Indeed, Williams had a league-high 775 carries over that span. Adding four seasons of football at Texas, the 228-pound Williams has absorbed a lot of punishment for nine consecutive years.

By leaving football early, Williams may be hoping to avoid the constant pain his mentor and fellow ex-Longhorn, Earl Campbell, has suffered since retiring from the NFL in 1985. After beginning his career with four magnificent seasons with the Houston Oilers, gaining 6,457 yards on 1,404 carries in that span, the Hall of Famer was often injured and relatively ineffective in the final years of an eight-year career.

By comparison, Campbell gained 2,950 yards on 783 yards in his final four seasons with Houston and the New Orleans Saints. Today, Campbell has trouble walking, a reminder of the hits he absorbed while playing football.

"People don't realize what it feels to wake up on Monday morning after a football game," Bianco said. "It's such a violent sport. Players have to work real hard to stay motivated."

Although no one questions Williams' ferocity on the football field, Bianco and Texas assistant athletic director Bill Little said he was never consumed by the game.

"Ricky had always said that he wanted to become a teacher and help elementary schoolkids," Little said.

Bianco recalls Williams returning to Texas for his senior year, even though he could have signed a lucrative NFL contract by leaving as a junior. Never motivated by money, Williams often said winning the Heisman Trophy would be his "lifelong crowning achievement" in football.

"Ricky played for the love of the game," Bianco said. "His dream was to be the best college football player ever. When he reached that goal, everything else was icing on the cake."

Williams needs about 1 1/2 years to earn a bachelor's degree in education, Bianco said. Brown added that Williams will return to Texas to finish his education.

"I am happy that Ricky is healthy and has a bright future ahead of him," Brown said. "We look forward to having him back here in Austin as soon as it works out for him."

That crazy fucker must be off his meds if he thinks Miami would ever let him play for a division rival.

Homercles wrote:

That crazy fucker must be off his meds if he thinks Miami would ever let him play for a division rival.

Since when were Oakland and Miami in the same division? Same Conference (AFC) yes. Same division (Miami East, Oakland West) No.

And last year I had to inform Winnow that Seattle was in the NFC. Maybe I should start up a class on NFL Geography.