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DE/LB Nathan Williams (official thread)

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Former Ohio State football players Travis Howard, Nathan Williams hoping to shine in Shrine Game
By Dan Hope
[email protected]
Published: Thursday, January 17, 2013

Two former Buckeyes, cornerback Travis Howard and defensive end Nathan Williams, will have that opportunity at the East-West Shrine Game Saturday.

Howard and Williams are among a select group of college football players projected as potential NFL draft selections who were invited to St. Petersburg, Fla., to make an impression on NFL scouts, coaches and executives. The players practiced in front of NFL personnel Monday through Thursday, and the week culminates with Saturday?s game.

Williams, who returned to play 10 games as a fifth-year senior after missing the entire 2011 season due to microfracture surgery on his right knee, said it was an honor just to get invited to the Shrine Game.

?I feel very blessed to even be considered to be with all these guys, all these great players here,? Williams said.

Williams played defensive end for the Buckeyes last season but began his OSU career as a linebacker. He said he has played as both a middle and outside linebacker this week and thinks he has impressed scouts with his versatility.

?It?s been great to get back behind the line and kind of have everything develop in front of you, and to have those big bodies take up gaps,? Williams said.

Williams said he believes he is best suited to play linebacker at the next level.

?I think I?m best at being a linebacker for sure because of my body type and my versatility as far as rushing the passer and pass coverage responsibilities go,? Williams said. ?Hopefully I get to a team that knows where they can have a position for me ? I just know that whatever team gets me is going to have a great one and hopefully I make the most of my opportunities.?
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http://www.thelantern.com/sports/fo...o-shine-in-shrine-game-1.2973095#.UPlEDGc1CSp
 
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Ohio State football: Position changes likely at pro level
By Bill Rabinowitz
The Columbus Dispatch
Wednesday February 20, 2013

They left their Ohio State careers with an exclamation point. Now they pursue their NFL dreams as question marks.

The Buckeyes? 12-0 season in 2012 will forever be cherished memories to the seven OSU football players going to the NFL combine this week in Indianapolis. Their legacy as leaders on only the sixth undefeated team in school history is secure. But nothing about their pro careers is.

Take Nathan Williams, who beat the odds by returning from microfracture knee surgery to play his senior season. A defensive end for Ohio State, Williams? best chance in the NFL probably is as a linebacker. Defensive end John Simon might be asked to make a similar transition. Zach Boren, whose switch from fullback to linebacker solidified the Buckeyes? defense in the stretch drive, is not sure what position he will try to play in the pros.

Defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins is projected to be a first-round pick. It?s too early to predict with any confidence when, or in some cases if, the others will be drafted.

Williams is just grateful to have put himself in position to be drafted. He estimates that he played last year at about 80 percent because his left knee was still regaining strength.

?It?s scary to think I played this season not being close to 100 percent,? Williams said. ?I don?t think Ohio State really saw the real Nathan Williams.?

For the last two months, Williams ? along with Jake Stoneburner and Reid Fragel ? have been working out at the Performance Enhancement Professionals facility in Arizona.

?I usually get in at 8 in the morning and don?t leave until 3 or 4 in the afternoon,? Williams said. ?They?re grueling workouts we have to go through. But at the end of the day, it?s very rewarding knowing you got better.?

Williams is confident that he will impress NFL scouts.

?You have to have confidence, or you?ll be left in the dust,? he said. ?I?m confident in my abilities, always have been. I think whatever team takes me will have a pleasant surprise.?

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http://buckeyextra.dispatch.com/content/stories/2013/02/20/position-changes-likely-at-pro-level.html
 
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Williams:

Williams had flashes of brilliance in his OSU career, but was consistently hindered by injury. For Williams, who missed the entire 2011 season after microfracture knee surgery and missed two games in his senior season due to injury, the medical examination could make or break whether he is drafted at all.

Williams, who is working out as a defensive lineman on Monday, has potential as both a pass-rushing defensive end and as his original position of linebacker. But for a team to take a chance on him in the late rounds of the 2013 draft, they will have to be satisfied with his medical reports.
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http://www.thelantern.com/sports/7-...-nfl-combine-1.2995333?pagereq=2#.USYYy2cV-So

Ohio State's Nathan Williams, feeling like a new man, is one of seven Buckeyes ready to begin the NFL Combine
Doug Lesmerises, The Plain Dealer
February 21, 2013

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Ohio State's Nathan Williams thought he played out of position with the Buckeyes and now feels healthy and ready to tackle a move to linebacker. (Photo by Marvin Fong, The Plain Dealer)

COLUMBUS, Ohio ? There was a time while coming back from his knee surgeries that Nathan Williams wondered if he should start looking for a job. Now he'll be on some major job interviews in Indianapolis for the next several days.

Making the switch from defensive end to outside linebacker, Williams is one of seven Buckeyes invited to the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis this week. He'll join potential first-round pick and defensive lineman Johnathan Hankins, offensive tackle Reid Fragel, defensive lineman John Simon who is also making the shift to outside linebacker, fullback Zach Boren, linebacker Etienne Sabino and tight end Jake Stoneburner.

It's an interesting crew for OSU. Hankins was projected as a potential top 10 pick during the season, but many draft analysts now question his stamina after seeing him as inconsistent during the 2012 season, and he is viewed more often as a pick in the 20s or lower. Fragel has great upside after playing just one year at tackle in Columbus, Simon was Urban Meyer's favorite player but is in the midst of a position switch, Boren could have ideal fullback tools but played the second half of 2012 at linebacker, Sabino fought through an injury in 2012 and Stoneburner was more like a receiver in 2012 after playing traditional tight end his first three seasons.

As for Williams, ?I actually feel like a whole new man, to be honest with you.?

He has been working out in Scottsdale, Ariz., since Dec. 16, along with Fragel and Stoneburner, save for a week at the East-West Shrine Game. After missing the 2011 season following microfracture surgery on his left knee, then playing the 2012 season and dealing with soreness after being unable to work out in the offseason to prepare, Williams is relieved to feel like he's got it all back together.

?I feel like my career has really just taken off,? Williams said by phone from Arizona on Tuesday. His plan was to arrive in Indianapolis on Thursday morning. ?I'm peaking at the right time, like I'm supposed to do.?

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http://www.cleveland.com/osu/index.ssf/2013/02/ohio_states_nathan_williams_fe.html
 
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