Former Red Bank High School and University of Tennessee at Chattanooga running back Keon Williams and former Dalton standout and Georgia offensive lineman Watts Dantzler were among 54 players participating in the Jacksonville Jaguars’ minicamp that started Friday.
They are two of 28 players invited to join the eight players drafted by the Jaguars, nine undrafted free agents and nine first-year players who are all under contract.
Williams, who played at 225 pounds during his UTC career but had bulked up to 238 by the team’s pro day, had 227 carries for 1,037 yards and 14 touchdowns during his senior season, earning All-Southern Conference honors. His single-season rushing total is the eighth-highest in Mocs history, and his 30 career rushing touchdowns are a school record.
His 2,379 career yards are seventh all-time. He is one of three Mocs currently participating in rookie camps, joining defensive linemen Davis Tull, a fifth-round draft pick of the New Orleans Saints, and Derrick Lott, who signed as a free agent with the Tennessee Titans.
Attempts to reach Williams were unsuccessful.
Williams is one of five running backs participating in the camp, joining Alabama’s T.J. Yeldon — Jacksonville’s second-round draft pick — Auburn’s Corey Grant, Sacred Heart’s Keshaudas Spence and The Citadel’s Jake Stenson.
Dantzler, a former four-star prospect, played in 35 games during his Bulldogs career. The 6-foot-7, 320-pounder helped the Bulldogs rush for a Southeastern Conference-high 257.8 yards per game but was a part of the biggest story of the day coming out of the camp when it was reported that Jaguars first-round draft pick Dante Fowler Jr. — the No. 3 overall pick — tore a knee ligament in practice.
Dantzler, practicing at right tackle, was blocking Fowler on the play.
“I went to apologize to him (Fowler) and he was like, ‘You’re good, man. It’s just football,'” Dantzler told ESPN’s Michael DiRocco after practice.
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him at twitter.com/genehenleytfp.