Virginia Tech Football: Why Thomas Williams is The Hokies Breakout Sophomore Defensive Star

For the Virginia Tech Hokies, there are still a number of promising talents on their roster, despite a number of aging talents like transfer Donavon Greene, James Djonkam, and Ben Bell, that have recently been added to the roster.

Yesterday we looked at potential offensive star Takye Heath, and how wideout coach Fontel Mines has a proven history of developing wide receiver rooms. Today we wanted to take a look at someone who could have same impact as Heath on the defensive end.

Thomas Williams

Williams is currently a redshirt sophomore like Heath, so forgive if they aren't true sophomores like the article may suggest but Williams showed immense promise in his first year getting minutes last season. Despite the Hokies enduring what turned out to be a disappointing season as Tech just edged a bowl game and totaled a 6-7 record after sky-high expectations in the preseason.

Last year, Williams made 13 appearances, including one start. Williams marked 14 tackles, including nine solo hits, with .5 tackles for loss. The South Carolina native found most of his success in the kick return game. Williams tallied 249 yards on 13 kicks, averaging 19.2 yards per return, and looks on the cusp of continuing the Hokies' elite return game.

Coming out of Powdersville High School, Williams was consistently rated as a top-100 safety out of the Palmetto State where he also starred as a running back in his state championship-winning career.

Williams will be tutored under one of the most liked coaches Virginia Tech has too offer in Derek Jones. Jones is heading into his fourth year as Tech cornerbacks coach.

At Tech Jones helped the Hokies secure six of the top 25 prospects in the state of Virginia during the 2023 recruiting cycle and five of the top 25 in the state in the 2024 class.

Before Tech, Jones was at seven different schools plying his trade in a number of different coaching positions, nearly all having to do with defensive backs in some capacity.

Jones also mentored Red Raiders CB Demarcus Fields, who was named a second-team All-Big 12 selection in 2021 and was an honorable mention all-conference pick in 2020. Jones molded CB Zech McPhearson into a first-team All-Big 12 selection in 2020, becoming just the second Red Raiders’ cornerback to earn that distinction since Texas Tech joined the Big 12 in 1996. McPhearson was selected in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles

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