Tag: Fayetteville State University

Chiefs CB Joshua Williams returns to Fayetteville State a Super Bowl champion

#Chiefs CB Joshua Williams returned to his alma mater, Super Bow LVII ring in tow, to host a youth football camp this past week.

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Kansas City Chiefs CB Joshua Williams returned to his HBCU alma mater — Fayetteville State University — this past week to host a youth football camp.

A year ago at this time, Williams was just entering the league as a bright-eyed rookie. Now, he returned to Luther Nick Jeralds Stadium in Fayetteville, North Carolina as a Super Bowl champion.

“It was good,” Williams told CBS reporter Chris Clark. “It really reminded me of when I was a kid — these kids are really out here competing.”

One of the reasons that the kids are out there playing with such passion is because they know they’re in the presence of a Super Bowl-winning defensive back. He represents what these kids can achieve with hard work and dedication.

Williams, of course, brought his brand new Super Bowl LVII ring along.

“It’s a manifestation of all the work you put in through the year,” Williams explained. “You know. . . training camp, preseason, the regular season, all the way into the playoffs, all the way into the AFC Championship Game and then the Super Bowl. All of that hard work has paid off. It’s just breathtaking. I couldn’t even speak, all I could do was look at it. Of course, it looks good, but it just feels good to get that. It is ‘blingy’, don’t get me wrong, but it has some real sentimental value.”

The 2022 NFL season is still processing for Williams. He was thrown into the fray early as a rookie and it was a whirlwind of a year culminating in a championship win.

The second-year corner says using his now 20 games of NFL experience to fortify his game for the 2023 NFL season, with the goal of becoming the best version of himself on the field. Last year was about surviving for Williams, but he says this year is all about thriving.

“A lot of those firsts, you’re just thrown into a lot of situations,” Williams said. “Of course, you may have been prepared, but you didn’t have the experience to go along with it. So, I feel like this year has just been fine-tuning everything, building on every good thing I did last year and breaking down any bad thing that I did. You know, working on any weakness I have. Perfecting the playbook. Really trying to master and understand everything that goes on around me. Last year a lot of that was, let me just know what (responsibility) I have for this game, for whatever situation, you just wanted to survive. Now, I’m trying to go out there and thrive and actually be the best I can be.”

With teammates Trent McDuffie and L’Jarius Sneed sidelined by injury early in the offseason program, Williams should certainly receive the practice repetitions necessary to achieve those goals.

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Jets hire Air Force coach with ties to Gregg Williams

Chip Vaughn, who coached Air Force’s defensive backs for the past two seasons, will join the Jets as a defensive assistant.

The Jets went to the college ranks to add an assistant for Gregg Williams’ defensive staff.

Chip Vaughn, previously an Air Force defensive backs coach, joined the Jets as a defensive assistant and assistant defensive backs coach, according to the Colorado Springs Gazette. Vaughn coached the Falcons’ defensive backs the previous two seasons.

This offseason, the Jets lost assistant defensive backs coach Steve Jackson, who became the new Cincinnati Bengals cornerbacks coach. Just two weeks ago, the Jets added Leigh Torrence as their assistant defensive backs coach. On Tuesday, the team added Vaughn, in addition to Torrence, to help assist Dennard Wilson, the team’s passing game coordinator/defensive backs coach.

Torrence played cornerback during his football career, while Vaughn played safety. It’s likely the two will help assist those two positions, respectively.

After playing college football at Wake Forrest University, Vaughn was drafted by the New Orleans Saints in the fourth round in 2009. There, he played under Williams.

Vaughn was waived after spending the entire season on injured reserve, but he did earn a Super Bowl ring with New Orleans. Vaughn would go on to play two more seasons in the NFL, with stints in Philadelphia, Indianapolis and Carolina. From there, Vaughn played for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the CFL.

In 2015, Vaughn began his coaching career, overseeing safeties and assisting with special teams at Winston-Salem State University through the NFLPA Coaching Internship program. He was promoted to an assistant coach after the internship ended.

The following season, Vaughn joined Fayetteville State University football, where he was hired as defensive backs coach, defensive passing game coordinator and videotape exchange coordinator.

Now he’s in the Big Apple, reunited with Williams.