Tag: Ricky Williams

Ricky Williams told us why he was so happy to hear that Aaron Rodgers tripped on ayahuasca

“He’s living his true self.”

Before the start of the NFL season we learned that Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers tried something different to get ready for the 2020 season – ayahuasca, which is a plant-based psychedelic tea.

Rodgers, the reigning league MVP, recently told Peter King he went back to Peru before the start of this season to experience ayahuasca again and that it has helped him in a bunch of different ways.

“Man, it’s hard to answer that question with a short answer. But a lot of different ways. The most important way was really that self-love part. I think it’s unlocked a lot of my heart. Being able to fully give my heart to my teammates, my loved ones, relationships because I can fully embrace unconditionally myself. Just didn’t do that for a long time. I was very self-critical. When you have so much judgment on yourself it’s easy to transfer that judgment to other people. When you figure out a better way to love yourself, I think you can love people better because you’re not casting the same judgment you cast on yourself on other people. I’m really thankful for that.”

Last week I was able to talk to former NFL running back Ricky Williams about Rodgers sharing that info and Williams explained why he was so happy to hear it.

Here’s our conversation about that from USA Today Sports’ weekly sports show, Sports Seriously:

Here’s more from my chat with Ricky:

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Two Longhorns make the preseason Doak Walker Award Watch List

Only Wisconsin can boast as many Doak Walker winners as Texas. 

Bijan Robinson and Roschon Johnson are squarely in the spotlight heading into the 2022 season. The two running backs were named to the preseason Doak Walker Watch List issued by the PwC SMU Athletic Forum.

The Doak Walker award is given to the best running back in the nation. Doak Walker was a standard-setter at SMU at the halfback position.

Famously, Ricky Williams wore No. 37 in the Cotton Bowl against Oklahoma to honor the running back with whom he would befriend before Walker’s passing. Williams, now known as Errick Miron, remarked, “I thought it would be neat to wear 37 in the house that Doak built,” said Williams. “I’m playing with him in my heart.”

Four Longhorns have won the prestigious award. Only Wisconsin can boast as many Doak Walker winners as Texas.

Robinson and Johnson will try to join Cedric Benson, D’Onta Foreman, and two-time winner Ricky Williams on that list.

Contact/Follow us @LonghornsWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas news, notes and opinions.

Ricky Williams shares two wild stories about NFL players’ marijuana use during his time with Saints and Ravens

From brownies to blunts, marijuana was very much around NFL teams during Ricky Williams’ playing days.

While the conversation around cannabis usage in sports, and the country as a whole, has evolved over the past decade, former NFL running back Ricky Williams wants you to know pro football players have been blazing up for quite some time. 

In an interview with Mackenzie Salmon on USA Today’s weekly show Sports Seriously, the eccentric former running back shared two stories from his career that revealed how NFL players used marijuana to deal with pain management: 

I played a long time ago and I played for a long time. So things have changed a lot when I first got into the league.

My rookie year, a Hall of Fame player on the team, he’s in the Hall of Fame now, invited me over to his house and he gave me the speech about how to take care of yourself in the NFL. And he pulled out some cannabis, crushed it up, split a blunt, opened it up, put the cannabis in there, took a Vicodin, crushed it up, sprinkled the Vico in there, rolled up the blunt and passed it to me. That was a vet, teaching me as a rookie, how to take care of myself in the NFL.

Then there was this at the end of his career:

My last year in the NFL, I was playing for the Ravens. And one point we were in the playoffs and I was leaving the facility and there were guys coming in with a plate full of ‘brownies.’ They [were] going to go watch film, so yeah…

And now, because it’s more legal, it’s to the point, why wouldn’t you [use it] if you’re in the NFL?

For reference, Williams’ rookie year was in 1999 with the New Orleans Saints and his last year in the league was in 2011 with the Baltimore Ravens. It wasn’t until the new CBA was reached in 2020 when the NFL eased their policies on players’ cannabis usage. Clearly players were not waiting for the new CBA to get their CBD (and THC) fix in the past. 

Williams now has his own brand of cannabis called ‘Highsman’ and continues to be an advocate for cannabis use for pain management in sports. He believes it’s only a matter of time until NFL teams are using marijuana in an official capacity: 

“I think in the future, teams are gonna be supplying cannabis for the players because they’ve realized it’s a healthy alternative [to] pharmaceuticals.”

You can watch the full Sports Seriously interview here:

Clemson baseball is losing another player to South Carolina

Another Clemson player is transferring to South Carolina.

You know the saying when it rains, it pours? That seems to be the case for Clemson baseball right now, as yet another player has announced they are transferring to the Tigers’ in-state rival in the wake of the firing of Monte Lee.

Sophomore pitcher Ricky Williams announced on Twitter Wednesday that he would be transferring to South Carolina to continue his baseball career. Williams joins Dylan Brewer and Jonathan French as the third Tiger to transfer to South Carolina since Lee’s firing.

Williams made nine appearances for Clemson this season, finishing the season with a 2-0 record and a 2.95 earned run average, primarily coming in relief for the Tigers.

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Another Clemson player announces transfer to South Carolina

After recently deciding to leave the program in the wake of Monte Lee’s firing, another Clemson baseball player is switching sides of the in-state rivalry. Sophomore pitcher Ricky Williams announced via social media Wednesday his intention to …

After recently deciding to leave the program in the wake of Monte Lee’s firing, another Clemson baseball player is switching sides of the in-state rivalry.

Sophomore pitcher Ricky Williams announced via social media Wednesday his intention to transfer to South Carolina. Williams is the third former Clemson player to do so since Lee was relieved of his duties as the Tigers’ coach late last month, joining Dylan Brewer and Jonathan French.

Williams went 2-0 with a 2.95 earned run average in nine appearances this season, most of those coming in relief. He allowed 18 hits and struck out 12 in 21 1/3 innings. He made 15 appearances with four starts in his two seasons with the Tigers.

Former Dolphins RB Ricky Williams changes his name

He explains that he changed it over a year ago.

The Miami Dolphins have had a number of memorable running backs that have graced the fields in South Florida, but Ricky Williams might’ve been the most memorable of the bunch.

Williams played seven seasons with the Dolphins from 2002-10, ending his time in Miami having rushed for more yards than anyone to don the aqua and orange not named Larry Csonka. He also finished second in franchise history, right behind Csonka again, in rushing touchdowns.

In a recent episode of “The Dan LeBetard Show with Stugotz,” Williams revealed that he’s actually changed his name over a year ago to “Errick Miron,” taking his wife’s last name.

“I did it probably a year and a half ago, made it official,” Williams said (transcribed by Ravens Wire). “Something I’ve been thinking about and talking about, and I finally went through the steps and I went to the social security office with my marriage certificate, and I went through the process, and it was quick and easy, and it felt meaningful. It felt really meaningful.”

The former Texas Longhorn actually revealed that Williams wasn’t even his real last name.

“There’s like one of those family secrets…My grandma, obviously, back then you don’t say anything. And so Williams was her husband’s name who wasn’t my dad’s father. So Williams is not even really my last name…”

While fans will still likely call him by his former last name, his new one seems to be very special to him.

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Former Ravens RB Ricky Williams reveals name change

Former Ravens running back Ricky Williams revealed that he changed his name

The Baltimore Ravens have had many veterans walk through their doors over the course of their franchise history. They’ve been able to get the best out of some of the players who are entering the back end of their careers, and they value the experience and leadership that each of them brings.

One of the veterans that Baltimore brought in was running back Ricky Williams. He played with the Ravens for one season during the last year of his career in 2011, rushing 108 times for 444 yards and two touchdowns. In an interview on “The Dan LeBetard Show with Stugotz”, Williams revealed that he changed his name to “Errick Miron” around a year and a half ago, taking the last name of his wife of the last five years. Williams said the change felt very meaningful to him.

“I did it probably a year and a half ago, made it official…Something I’ve been thinking about and talking about, and I finally went through the steps and I went to the social security office with my marriage certificate, and I went through the process, and it was quick and easy, and it felt meaningful. It felt really meaningful.”

Williams was born as Errick Williams, and went by Ricky. He revealed that the change was a way to create a balance in his relationship with his wife. He also mentioned that Williams isn’t really his last name.

“There’s like one of those family secrets…My grandma, obviously, back then you don’t say anything. And so Williams was her husband’s name who wasn’t my dad’s father. So Williams is not even really my last name…”

Clemson’s rotation still in flux ahead of another key series

With time running out for Clemson to make a move for the postseason, the Tigers’ search for dependable weekend pitching behind Mack Anglin continues. Clemson coach Monte Lee has yet to decide who will get the ball in the Tigers’ final two games …

With time running out for Clemson to make a move for the postseason, the Tigers’ search for dependable weekend pitching behind Mack Anglin continues.

Clemson coach Monte Lee has yet to decide who will get the ball in the Tigers’ final two games against No. 21 Georgia Tech (27-18, 12-12 ACC) this weekend. Anglin, the one constant in Clemson’s weekend rotation throughout the season with a 3.62 earned run average, will get his usual Friday start in the series opener at Doug Kingsmore Stadium, but Clemson has given the TBA (to be announced) designation for its Saturday and Sunday starters.

Getting depth out of its other weekend starters has been an issue all season for the Tigers, who began the week with a team ERA of 4.45 after giving up 35 runs against Louisville last weekend, including 18 in the Cardinals’ sweep-clinching victory Sunday. Those three losses dropped Clemson (28-17 overall) to 6-14 in ACC play, the second-worst record in the conference.

There are just three weekends left in the regular season, which could be the extent of Clemson’s season if the Tigers aren’t able to put a run together late. Clemson needs to finish with one of the top 12 winning percentages in league play in order to qualify for the ACC Tournament. Duke and North Carolina, which each own a .381 conference winning percentage, would be the final two teams in the tournament if it started today.

Any charge Clemson hopes to make, though, has to start with improvement on the mound.

Freshman right-hander Billy Barlow lasted just 1 ⅔ innings in the series finale against Louisville, allowing five runs (three earned) on three hits with three walks. Barlow, who’s spent much of the season as a midweek starter, moved into the rotation the week before in place of sophomore Nick Clayton, who’s got a 5.97 ERA on the season and hasn’t lasted longer than the fourth inning in any of his last four starts.

Barlow has pitched just 5 ⅓ innings in his first two weekend starts combined. Meanwhile, reliever-turned-starter Geoffrey Gilbert didn’t last long in his second straight weekend starter, yielding six earned runs on four hits and issuing three walks in just 1 ⅓ innings Saturday in the Tigers’ 10-8 loss.

Gilbert was better in his first start against Florida State the previous week, working into the fifth inning and giving up just three earned runs on four hits. His first 13 appearances this season came out of the bullpen before Lee started the sophomore right-hander instead of freshman Jay Dill, who had replaced Nick Hoffman (5.59 ERA) as the Saturday starter against Wake Forest on April 16. But Dill recorded just one out and allowed seven earned runs before getting pulled from that game, prompting Lee to switch it up again a couple of weeks ago.

While Lee could ultimately choose to stick with Gilbert and Barlow or move Hoffman and Clayton back into the rotation, they aren’t the only options.

Lee has mentioned another freshman, Casey Tallent, as someone who could get a crack at a weekend start. Tallent (2.74 ERA) has yielded just seven earned runs in 23 innings this season and didn’t allow an earned run in 2 ⅓ innings in his lone start so far against East Tennessee State on April 20. There’s also sophomore Ricky Williams (1.59), who’s made just seven appearances all season but held Presbyterian to two runs on five hits in 6 ⅔ innings his last time out on April 26.

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Lee addresses Clemson’s pitching situation after latest shakeup

Who will fill in as the midweek starters for Clemson’s baseball team this week? And will the Tigers stick with the same rotation in yet another pivotal ACC series at Louisville this weekend? Those are questions Clemson coach Monte Lee and his staff …

Who will fill in as the midweek starters for Clemson’s baseball team this week? And will the Tigers stick with the same rotation in yet another pivotal ACC series at Louisville this weekend?

Those are questions Clemson coach Monte Lee and his staff find themselves needing to answer after their latest alteration on the mound. A day after changing his Saturday starter for the second straight week, Lee started freshman Billy Barlow in place of Nick Clayton for the Tigers’ series finale Sunday.

With the help of six relievers, Clemson rallied to beat the Seminoles to win its second straight ACC series after dropping the first four. But the decision to start Barlow, the Tigers’ usual midweek starter, means Clemson will have to turn elsewhere for their next game Tuesday against Presbyterian at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.

Clemson has another game at home Wednesday against No. 25 Wofford, so the Tigers will need a couple of fresh arms to help them get through the midweek. Clayton, who last pitched an inning of relief Wednesday in Clemson’s win over East Tennessee State, is a candidate to start. So is Nick Hoffman, who began the season in the weekend rotation but has made his last four appearances in relief.

But they’re not the only ones. While most of their appearances have come out of the bullpen, freshman Casey Tallent and sophomore Ricky Williams have each started a game this season. Williams (0.87 earned run average) has allowed just one earned run in 10 ⅓ innings while Tallent (2.37), who got his first career start against ETSU last week, has held opposing batters to a .224 average in 19 innings.

Lee said following Sunday’s game he and his staff will talk it over before making a decision at some point today.

“We have options between Ricky Williams, Clayton, Tallent,” Lee said. “So we’ll talk it over as a staff and try to figure out how to piece 18 innings there together in the middle of the week.”

As for the weekend, Lee said he will take the same approach when deciding whether or not he’ll keep the back end of the rotation the same against Louisville, which begins the week tied with Notre Dame atop the ACC’s Atlantic Division standings.

Sophomore right-hander Mack Anglin (3.24) has been the constant for Clemson all season in the Friday night spot, but the rest of the weekend has been a bugaboo for most of the season. Clemson had not had a Saturday or Sunday starter work past the fourth inning since its ACC-opening series against Miami until Gilbert did so this past Saturday. In his first start of the season, Gilbert limited FSU to three runs on four hits in 4 1/3 innings.

On Sunday, Barlow yielded three runs in the first inning before settling in to get through the first 3 ⅔ frames on 82 pitches. Asked if Barlow has earned another weekend start against the Cardinals, Lee was non-committal.

“He’s not going to be available in the middle of the week, so it certainly makes sense to potentially start him again next weekend,” Lee said. “But obviously we’ll discuss that as a staff before we make any sort of decision on what we’re going to do there.”

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Five Longhorns featured in ESPN’s All-Time Top 100 RBs

Texas has a rich history of excellent running back play.

Before Bijan Robinson became a superstar in the Texas backfield, the Longhorns had a rich history of excellent running back play over the past six decades.

ESPN’s Bill Connelly ranked the top 100 running backs in college football from the past 60 seasons. Texas has produced plenty of candidates to be considered for the list.

We see very few running backs getting 25 carries per game, and only three RBs have won the Heisman in the 21st century. The position is evolving, but it’s still a key piece of almost every college football offense. So let’s take a moment to commemorate the best backs we’ve seen.

Of two Heisman winners, four Doak Walker Award winners and multiple All-Americans who have worn the burnt orange over the years, five former standout Longhorn running backs ended up on Connelly’s list.

Texas and USC are the only schools with five former players making the cut.

Here is where each Texas running back ranks in the top 100: