2021 Football Roster
Roster
Williams, Rayshad
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Jersey Number 12
Rayshad Williams
- Position:
- Defensive Back
- Height:
- 6-3
- Weight:
- 195
- Class:
- Junior
- Hometown:
- Memphis, Tenn.
- High School:
- Whitehaven
Bio
2023 SEASON (SUPER SENIOR)
Put together a strong final season as a Red Raider … appeared in 12 games overall with eight starts at cornerback … missed only one game, which came due to injury in the Radiant Technologies Independence Bowl … closed his collegiate career by appearing in exactly 60 games between his time as a Red Raider and UCLA … totaled 19 tackles on the season (16 solo), including 1.0 that went for a loss, to go along with six pass breakups … notched multiple tackles in six games overall … ranked sixth on the team for pass breakups as five of those came during Big 12 play … credited with playing in 473 defensive snaps by Pro Football Focus … targeted 27 times in coverage with only 13 of those passes completed … his .481 completion percentage against him was the second-lowest on the team behind only Bralyn Lux (.466) … allowed only one touchdown through the air on the season … SEASON HIGHLIGHTS: opened the season with two tackles in two of the first three games of the season at Wyoming (9/2) and against Tarleton State (9/16) … recorded a season-high five stops in between those two contests in Texas Tech’s home opener against Oregon (9/16) … posted three tackles in the win over Houston (9/30) and then two stops in the road victory at Baylor (10/7) … one of those tackles at Baylor went for a loss, just his third solo stop behind the line in his career … broke up a pass in the win over the Bears as well, grading out at 72.8 overall by PFF … received his best grade of the season by PFF against Kansas State (10/14), finishing at 78.0 after registering a tackle and a season-high two pass breakups … combined for four tackles the rest of the season with one at BYU (10/21) and UCF (11/18) and two versus TCU (11/2) … broke up a pass in the win over the Knights as well as the week before against Kansas (11/11) … performance versus TCU was part of his 32nd and final start of his Red Raider career ... 2024 NFL DRAFT: signed as an undrafted free agent with the Las Vegas Raiders organization immediately following the draft.
2022 SEASON (SENIOR)
Once again one of Texas Tech’s most-relied upon defensive backs in the secondary … appeared in all 13 and started in 12 of those with the lone exception being the TaxAct Texas Bowl victory … totaled 37 tackles (28 solo), including one that went for a loss … added seven pass breakups, an interception and a fumble recovery from his spot at cornerback … ranked second on the team for pass breakups behind only fellow cornerback Malik Dunlap … finished one tackle shy of his total from his 2021 debut season as a Red Raider … had at least one tackle in all 13 games and posted three or more in eight different contests … had two or more stops in eight of nine games during Big 12 play … of his eight total passes defended, seven of those came against conference foes … credited with playing in 872 defensive snaps by Pro Football Focus, which ranked third on the team behind only Dadrion Taylor-Demerson and Marquis Waters … targeted 54 times by opposing offenses with only 25 of those resulting in completions (46.3 percent) according to PFF … marked the lowest completion percentage among defensive players targeted at least 10 times on the season … also saw action on 140 snaps on special teams, mainly as part of punt return and the kick block units … made occasional appearances throughout the year on kick return, punt coverage and kickoff coverage as well … IN NCAA RANKINGS: was one of only 12 FBS players to have at least five passes defended in a game all season … ranked tied for fifth overall with his five passes defended at Oklahoma State … IN BIG 12 RANKINGS: was the lone Big 12 player to record five or more passes defended in a game all season … ranked tied for 10th in the league with seven passes defended against conference foes … was tied for eighth overall with seven total pass breakups on the season … SEASON HIGHLIGHTS: opened the season with three tackles in each of the first two games against Murray State (9/3) and Houston (9/10) … lone tackle for loss came in the win over Murray State, while his first pass breakup of the year was in the Houston victory … began Big 12 play with four stops and another pass breakup in the overtime victory over Texas (9/24) … put together possibly his best performance of the season at Oklahoma State (10/8) with three tackles and a career-high five pass breakups … marked only the third time since 2000 where a Red Raider had at least five passes defended in a game, joining the likes of Justis Nelson (2014 at TCU) and Jamar Wall (2009 vs. Oklahoma) … marked only the 14th time in that same period for a Big 12 player to do so as well and the first time since West Virginia’s Dreshun Miller also had five passes defended versus Kansas State in 2020 … credited with two tackles in each of the next three games against West Virginia (10/22), Baylor (10/29) and at TCU (11/5) … recorded each of his two takeaways during that stretch as well with an interception versus West Virginia and a fumble recovery against Baylor … interception came on West Virginia’s first play of the fourth quarter on a deep pass from J.T. Daniels, which all but sealed the win … marked the first interception of his career … the Red Raiders were able to cut the lead to seven points after his fumble recovery against Baylor, which came with 4:55 remaining in the third quarter … was also the first fumble recovery of his career … combined for 13 tackles over the final three games of the regular season with four against Kansas (11/12), three at Iowa State (11/19) and a season-high six versus Oklahoma (11/26) … was only one tackle shy of his career high in the win over the Sooners … closed the season with three tackles in the TaxAct Texas Bowl win over Ole Miss … AWARDS AND HONORS: garnered honorable mention All-Big 12 accolades by the conference coaches ... recognized on the Academic All-Big 12 second team for his work in the classroom ... SENIOR DECISION: elected to return to the Red Raiders for a super senior season in 2023 as part of the extra year of eligibility afforded due to the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign.
2021 SEASON (JUNIOR)
Put together strong debut as one of Texas Tech’s most reliable members in the secondary during debut season … appeared in all 13 games overall, including 12 starts at cornerback … totaled 38 tackles (30 solo) from the secondary, including 1.5 that went for a loss … ranked second on the team with 10 pass breakups, one fewer than team leader DaMarcus Fields … set career highs for most tackles and passes defended thus far in his career … had at least two tackles in 11 of 13 games overall … recorded a pass breakup in eight different games as well … led the team with 836 snaps defensively according to Pro Football Focus … credited with 95 snaps on special teams with 39 on punt return and 56 on field goal block … SEASON HIGHLIGHTS: began his Red Raider career with two tackles and a pass breakup in the come-from-behind win over Houston (9/4) … made his first start of the season the next week with three tackles and another pass breakup versus Stephen F. Austin (9/11) … closed non-conference play with four stops and a season-high two pass breakups against Florida International (9/18) … combined for five tackles over the first four games of Big 12 play with two stops at both Texas (9/25) and West Virginia (10/2) and another versus TCU (10/9) … had two pass breakups during that stretch, both of which that came at Kansas (10/16) … posted three tackles against both Kansas State (10/23) and at Oklahoma (10/30) … shared a tackle for loss versus the Wildcats to go along with a pass breakup … notched four tackles in the win over Iowa State, including one that went for a seven-yard loss … set a career high with seven tackles against Iowa State (11/20) … the Cyclones started a three-game streak to end the year with a pass breakup in each contest … closed the regular season with two stops at Baylor (11/27) … credited with five tackles in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl win over Mississippi State (12/28) … AWARDS AND HONORS: honorable mention All-Big 12 selection by the conference coaches.
PRIOR TO TEXAS TECH
Transferred to Texas Tech following three seasons at UCLA … arrived at Texas Tech with three full seasons of eligibility remaining … appeared in 22 games over his three seasons at UCLA, totaling 42 tackles (36 solo) with three pass breakups during that span … made eight starts during his UCLA tenure, all of which came over the final nine games of his 2019 redshirt freshman season … all eight of those starts came during Pac-12 play … recorded 11 multi-tackle games during his UCLA career with six contests of four or more stops … 2020 SEASON (SOPHOMORE): appeared in six games during the COVID-shortened season … credited with nine tackles (six solo) to go along with a pass breakup … listed with two tackles in four different games – at Oregon (11/21), at Arizona State (12/5) and at home versus both USC (12/12) and Stanford (12/19) … broke up his lone pass of the season in the crosstown rivalry game against the Trojans … 2019 SEASON (REDSHIRT FRESHMAN): closed the 2019 season with 33 tackles (30 solo) and two pass breakups while playing in all 12 games, including eight starts … had at least two tackles in seven games overall and four or more stops six times … finished tied for eighth on the team with his 33 tackles … best performance of the season came at Washington State (9/21) with a career-high six tackles and his first career pass breakup … marked the first game of his career with a tackle … added four tackles the next week at Arizona (9/28) and then five stops two weeks later at Oregon State (10/5) … final pass breakup of the season came versus the Beavers … added five tackles again later in the season against both Arizona State (10/26) and at USC (11/23) … posted four tackles versus Colorado (11/2) and two at Utah (11/16) before closing the season with one takedown against Cal (11/30) … tabbed to the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll for the spring 2020 semester … 2018 SEASON (FRESHMAN): redshirt season … saw action early in the season in non-conference play against Cincinnati (9/1), Oklahoma (9/8) and Fresno State (9/15) and then later in the year versus Arizona State (11/10).
HIGH SCHOOL
Attended Whitehaven High School in his hometown of Memphis, Tenn. … considered one of the top high school prospects coming out of Tennessee before deciding to move to California … helped lead Whitehaven to a perfect 15-0 record as a junior in 2016 and the Class 6A state title … credited with 64 tackles, including four for a loss, and six interceptions as a senior … totaled 44 tackles and three interceptions as a junior … three-star prospect according to Rivals, ESPN and 247Sports … listed as the No. 28 recruit in the state of Tennessee and the No. 85 cornerback prospect nationally by 247Sports … was the No. 17 recruit in Tennessee and No. 14 cornerback in the country by Rivals … ESPN listed him as the No. 24 recruit in the state and No. 53 cornerback for the 2018 class … chose to attend UCLA over offers from Arkansas, Colorado, Indiana, Memphis, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Virginia and Virginia Tech.
PERSONAL
Rayshad Williams … son of Carol and Raymond Williams … has two brothers and a sister … considers Jalen Ramsey and Troy Polamalu as two famous athletes he most admires... earned bachelor's degree in university studies from Texas Tech, December 2022 ... currently seeking a graduate degree in interdisciplinary studies.
Put together a strong final season as a Red Raider … appeared in 12 games overall with eight starts at cornerback … missed only one game, which came due to injury in the Radiant Technologies Independence Bowl … closed his collegiate career by appearing in exactly 60 games between his time as a Red Raider and UCLA … totaled 19 tackles on the season (16 solo), including 1.0 that went for a loss, to go along with six pass breakups … notched multiple tackles in six games overall … ranked sixth on the team for pass breakups as five of those came during Big 12 play … credited with playing in 473 defensive snaps by Pro Football Focus … targeted 27 times in coverage with only 13 of those passes completed … his .481 completion percentage against him was the second-lowest on the team behind only Bralyn Lux (.466) … allowed only one touchdown through the air on the season … SEASON HIGHLIGHTS: opened the season with two tackles in two of the first three games of the season at Wyoming (9/2) and against Tarleton State (9/16) … recorded a season-high five stops in between those two contests in Texas Tech’s home opener against Oregon (9/16) … posted three tackles in the win over Houston (9/30) and then two stops in the road victory at Baylor (10/7) … one of those tackles at Baylor went for a loss, just his third solo stop behind the line in his career … broke up a pass in the win over the Bears as well, grading out at 72.8 overall by PFF … received his best grade of the season by PFF against Kansas State (10/14), finishing at 78.0 after registering a tackle and a season-high two pass breakups … combined for four tackles the rest of the season with one at BYU (10/21) and UCF (11/18) and two versus TCU (11/2) … broke up a pass in the win over the Knights as well as the week before against Kansas (11/11) … performance versus TCU was part of his 32nd and final start of his Red Raider career ... 2024 NFL DRAFT: signed as an undrafted free agent with the Las Vegas Raiders organization immediately following the draft.
2022 SEASON (SENIOR)
Once again one of Texas Tech’s most-relied upon defensive backs in the secondary … appeared in all 13 and started in 12 of those with the lone exception being the TaxAct Texas Bowl victory … totaled 37 tackles (28 solo), including one that went for a loss … added seven pass breakups, an interception and a fumble recovery from his spot at cornerback … ranked second on the team for pass breakups behind only fellow cornerback Malik Dunlap … finished one tackle shy of his total from his 2021 debut season as a Red Raider … had at least one tackle in all 13 games and posted three or more in eight different contests … had two or more stops in eight of nine games during Big 12 play … of his eight total passes defended, seven of those came against conference foes … credited with playing in 872 defensive snaps by Pro Football Focus, which ranked third on the team behind only Dadrion Taylor-Demerson and Marquis Waters … targeted 54 times by opposing offenses with only 25 of those resulting in completions (46.3 percent) according to PFF … marked the lowest completion percentage among defensive players targeted at least 10 times on the season … also saw action on 140 snaps on special teams, mainly as part of punt return and the kick block units … made occasional appearances throughout the year on kick return, punt coverage and kickoff coverage as well … IN NCAA RANKINGS: was one of only 12 FBS players to have at least five passes defended in a game all season … ranked tied for fifth overall with his five passes defended at Oklahoma State … IN BIG 12 RANKINGS: was the lone Big 12 player to record five or more passes defended in a game all season … ranked tied for 10th in the league with seven passes defended against conference foes … was tied for eighth overall with seven total pass breakups on the season … SEASON HIGHLIGHTS: opened the season with three tackles in each of the first two games against Murray State (9/3) and Houston (9/10) … lone tackle for loss came in the win over Murray State, while his first pass breakup of the year was in the Houston victory … began Big 12 play with four stops and another pass breakup in the overtime victory over Texas (9/24) … put together possibly his best performance of the season at Oklahoma State (10/8) with three tackles and a career-high five pass breakups … marked only the third time since 2000 where a Red Raider had at least five passes defended in a game, joining the likes of Justis Nelson (2014 at TCU) and Jamar Wall (2009 vs. Oklahoma) … marked only the 14th time in that same period for a Big 12 player to do so as well and the first time since West Virginia’s Dreshun Miller also had five passes defended versus Kansas State in 2020 … credited with two tackles in each of the next three games against West Virginia (10/22), Baylor (10/29) and at TCU (11/5) … recorded each of his two takeaways during that stretch as well with an interception versus West Virginia and a fumble recovery against Baylor … interception came on West Virginia’s first play of the fourth quarter on a deep pass from J.T. Daniels, which all but sealed the win … marked the first interception of his career … the Red Raiders were able to cut the lead to seven points after his fumble recovery against Baylor, which came with 4:55 remaining in the third quarter … was also the first fumble recovery of his career … combined for 13 tackles over the final three games of the regular season with four against Kansas (11/12), three at Iowa State (11/19) and a season-high six versus Oklahoma (11/26) … was only one tackle shy of his career high in the win over the Sooners … closed the season with three tackles in the TaxAct Texas Bowl win over Ole Miss … AWARDS AND HONORS: garnered honorable mention All-Big 12 accolades by the conference coaches ... recognized on the Academic All-Big 12 second team for his work in the classroom ... SENIOR DECISION: elected to return to the Red Raiders for a super senior season in 2023 as part of the extra year of eligibility afforded due to the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign.
2021 SEASON (JUNIOR)
Put together strong debut as one of Texas Tech’s most reliable members in the secondary during debut season … appeared in all 13 games overall, including 12 starts at cornerback … totaled 38 tackles (30 solo) from the secondary, including 1.5 that went for a loss … ranked second on the team with 10 pass breakups, one fewer than team leader DaMarcus Fields … set career highs for most tackles and passes defended thus far in his career … had at least two tackles in 11 of 13 games overall … recorded a pass breakup in eight different games as well … led the team with 836 snaps defensively according to Pro Football Focus … credited with 95 snaps on special teams with 39 on punt return and 56 on field goal block … SEASON HIGHLIGHTS: began his Red Raider career with two tackles and a pass breakup in the come-from-behind win over Houston (9/4) … made his first start of the season the next week with three tackles and another pass breakup versus Stephen F. Austin (9/11) … closed non-conference play with four stops and a season-high two pass breakups against Florida International (9/18) … combined for five tackles over the first four games of Big 12 play with two stops at both Texas (9/25) and West Virginia (10/2) and another versus TCU (10/9) … had two pass breakups during that stretch, both of which that came at Kansas (10/16) … posted three tackles against both Kansas State (10/23) and at Oklahoma (10/30) … shared a tackle for loss versus the Wildcats to go along with a pass breakup … notched four tackles in the win over Iowa State, including one that went for a seven-yard loss … set a career high with seven tackles against Iowa State (11/20) … the Cyclones started a three-game streak to end the year with a pass breakup in each contest … closed the regular season with two stops at Baylor (11/27) … credited with five tackles in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl win over Mississippi State (12/28) … AWARDS AND HONORS: honorable mention All-Big 12 selection by the conference coaches.
PRIOR TO TEXAS TECH
Transferred to Texas Tech following three seasons at UCLA … arrived at Texas Tech with three full seasons of eligibility remaining … appeared in 22 games over his three seasons at UCLA, totaling 42 tackles (36 solo) with three pass breakups during that span … made eight starts during his UCLA tenure, all of which came over the final nine games of his 2019 redshirt freshman season … all eight of those starts came during Pac-12 play … recorded 11 multi-tackle games during his UCLA career with six contests of four or more stops … 2020 SEASON (SOPHOMORE): appeared in six games during the COVID-shortened season … credited with nine tackles (six solo) to go along with a pass breakup … listed with two tackles in four different games – at Oregon (11/21), at Arizona State (12/5) and at home versus both USC (12/12) and Stanford (12/19) … broke up his lone pass of the season in the crosstown rivalry game against the Trojans … 2019 SEASON (REDSHIRT FRESHMAN): closed the 2019 season with 33 tackles (30 solo) and two pass breakups while playing in all 12 games, including eight starts … had at least two tackles in seven games overall and four or more stops six times … finished tied for eighth on the team with his 33 tackles … best performance of the season came at Washington State (9/21) with a career-high six tackles and his first career pass breakup … marked the first game of his career with a tackle … added four tackles the next week at Arizona (9/28) and then five stops two weeks later at Oregon State (10/5) … final pass breakup of the season came versus the Beavers … added five tackles again later in the season against both Arizona State (10/26) and at USC (11/23) … posted four tackles versus Colorado (11/2) and two at Utah (11/16) before closing the season with one takedown against Cal (11/30) … tabbed to the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll for the spring 2020 semester … 2018 SEASON (FRESHMAN): redshirt season … saw action early in the season in non-conference play against Cincinnati (9/1), Oklahoma (9/8) and Fresno State (9/15) and then later in the year versus Arizona State (11/10).
HIGH SCHOOL
Attended Whitehaven High School in his hometown of Memphis, Tenn. … considered one of the top high school prospects coming out of Tennessee before deciding to move to California … helped lead Whitehaven to a perfect 15-0 record as a junior in 2016 and the Class 6A state title … credited with 64 tackles, including four for a loss, and six interceptions as a senior … totaled 44 tackles and three interceptions as a junior … three-star prospect according to Rivals, ESPN and 247Sports … listed as the No. 28 recruit in the state of Tennessee and the No. 85 cornerback prospect nationally by 247Sports … was the No. 17 recruit in Tennessee and No. 14 cornerback in the country by Rivals … ESPN listed him as the No. 24 recruit in the state and No. 53 cornerback for the 2018 class … chose to attend UCLA over offers from Arkansas, Colorado, Indiana, Memphis, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Virginia and Virginia Tech.
PERSONAL
Rayshad Williams … son of Carol and Raymond Williams … has two brothers and a sister … considers Jalen Ramsey and Troy Polamalu as two famous athletes he most admires... earned bachelor's degree in university studies from Texas Tech, December 2022 ... currently seeking a graduate degree in interdisciplinary studies.
Will Jados Media Availability
Tuesday, September 02
Reggie Virgil Media Availability
Tuesday, September 02
Lee Hunter Media Availability
Tuesday, September 02
Amier Boyd Media Availability
Tuesday, September 02
