Commitment Spotlight: Three-Star Cornerback Davion Williams

Davion Williams, a three-star cornerback and star athlete at Belleville High School, verbally committed to the Michigan State Spartans on June 17.

Let’s get to know him a little bit better, shall we? Davion was gracious enough to speak with me recently, and he is our next feature in the Commitment Spotlight series.

Williams was the fourth defensive back to pledge to the Spartans in the 2018 class — joining Xavier Henderson, Michael Dowell and Christian Jackson. He was the eighth recruit overall to commit to the Spartans’ class, which currently stands at 12.

“I decided to go to State because I thought it was a great fit for me and would take my game to the next level,” Williams said.

Per 247Sports Composite, Williams is the No. 15 player overall in the state of Michigan, and ranks at No. 57 for cornerbacks nationwide. However, the website’s own rankings see him as the No. 8 player in The Mitten and 31st-ranked cornerback in the country.

Meanwhile, Scout puts him at No. 48 in the national cornerback rankings, and No. 6 in the Midwest. Both Scout and 247Sports have him as Michigan’s second-ranked cornerback — only behind Cass Tech’s Kalon Gervin, who is another Michigan State target.

Williams is a confident player who isn’t afraid to get physical and knows how to do his job.

He also understands the areas of his game where he needs to improve on before he gets to East Lansing.

“I look at myself as a long, athletic corner who can play on and off (of the receiver),” he said. “I’m looking forward to improving on reading plays and learning the different sets that (opposing) offenses run.”

While Williams is a standout cornerback, and still has room to grow, he is also a terrific basketball player.

In fact, he is actually rated as a three-star shooting guard, and the No. 8 player, at any position, in the state of Michigan. He could have very well went the basketball route in college just the same.

“I think basketball helps me with the athletic part (of football),” William said. “Just making plays, and it also helped me catch on to football stuff faster.”

Williams has not ruled out playing for Tom Izzo — who Williams has spoken with —on the hardwood, and he certainly has the ability to, but right now his focus is on the gridiron.

“I’m going to give (playing basketball at MSU) some thought,” Williams said. “It’s nice and all, but I want to perfect my craft first.

“I think the most challenging thing (about playing two sports) is getting super good at one sport, but it would be the most rewarding thing to be a dual-sport athlete at Michigan State. It couldn’t get any better then that.”

One other variable that could potentially pull Williams to the basketball court is his close friend, teammate and 2018 MSU basketball commit, Gabe Brown.

The two both play on the Belleville High School basketball team, and have built a strong relationship — both on and off of the court.

“Gabe Brown is my brother,” Williams said. “Off of the court, he’s been my day-one since freshman year. Him being there is going to help me a lot (with my college transition).”

We have seen a couple of players, such as Matt Trannon and Dion Sims, wear the green and white on both the football field and basketball court in the past. Izzo has also gone on record saying that he doesn’t just “like” two-sport athletes, he “loves” them.

With all of that said, Williams’ first priority is on the football field, and that is admirable. He is not getting caught up in the potential glamour of being a two-sport athlete, and instead his focus is right where it needs to be.

He is excited about his opportunity to join the Michigan State football team, as he should be, but is also well aware of the current state of the program.

Williams, like the rest of the recruiting class, is not deterred by the Spartans’ mishaps both on and off the field over the past several months. He fully believes Michigan State, lead by Dantonio, is still the premier program in the nation.

“The Michigan State program is still the best in the country, and I just want to see them get back to having fun and winning football games (this season),” Williams said.

Williams, is tall, long and athletic. He stands at 6-feet-2-inches tall and weighs 185 pounds. He actually didn’t play football his freshmen or sophomore years of high school, after playing youth ball through eighth grade, but he picked it back up as a junior.

Putting a helmet on again paid off for Williams. While Williams may be a bit raw with only one year of high school ball under his belt, his skill set has already drawn the attention of many schools. He has received nearly 20 scholarship offers.

Several rival Big Ten schools — Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa, Purdue and Indiana — all offered Williams. Additionally, UCLA, Iowa State, Central Michigan, Temple and a slew of other schools extended an offer to him.

Michigan State’s 2018 class may not be flashy, as it currently ranks 37th nationally and ninth in the Big Ten, per 247Sports. However, I believe it is full of under-the-radar players who put the team first and will be pivotal in bringing the program back to glory in the coming years. Williams fits the bill.

Don’t forget to check out our previous Commitment Spotlight articles:

• Three-star outside linebacker, Jeslord Boateng
• Three-star offensive tackle, Dimitri Douglas
• Three-star defensive back, Mike Dowell
• Four-star tight end, Trenton Gillison

Check out Williams’ junior highlights below (courtesy of his Hudl account).