
Camp Randall 100: Sidney Williams
June 23, 2017 | Football, General News
Big Ten’s first African-American starting quarterback of the modern era was unlikely trailblazer
The Camp Randall 100 is an exclusive list celebrating 100 people who have shaped Camp Randall Stadium's history across the realms of sports, music, culture and beyond. A new honoree will be revealed each day over the final 100 days leading up to kickoff of the Wisconsin football team's season opener with Utah State on Friday, Sept. 1. The Camp Randall 100 reveal is part of a year-long celebration of the history of the iconic stadium, which opened in 1917.
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Camp Randall 100 profiles through June 23, 2017:
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MADISON, Wis. — According to at least one account, Sidney Williams had to "beg his way on the squad" in order to join the Wisconsin football team in the mid-1950s. However he got his start, there's no disputing Williams' rapid rise from little-used defensive back to trailblazing quarterback.
Williams seemed an unlikely choice when coach Milt Bruhn tabbed him to provide a spark for the Badgers' struggling offense, but he went on to a successful run under center as the first African-American quarterback in the modern era of the Big Ten Conference.
Read more in Williams' Camp Randall 100 profile.
Camp Randall 100 profiles through June 23, 2017:
- May 24 - Pat Richter
- May 25 - Jesse Owens
- May 26 - John Clay
- May 27 - Burt Reynolds
- May 28 - John R. Richards
- May 29 - Matt Schabert
- May 30 - Leo Butts
- May 31 - Katie Couric
- June 1 - Alan Ameche
- June 2 - The Portage Plumber
- June 3 - Aaron Gibson
- June 4 - Jim Mott
- June 5 - Red Wilson
- June 6 - Brooks Bollinger
- June 7 - Donna Shalala
- June 8 - David Gilreath
- June 9 - Genesis
- June 10 - Brianna Decker
- June 11 - Ivy Williamson
- June 12 - Keith Jackson
- June 13 - Joe Schobert
- June 14 - Eric Heiden
- June 15 - Ron Vander Kelen
- June 16 - Joe Thomas
- June 17 - Fred Gage
- June 18 - Tom Burke
- June 19 - Walter "Mickey" McGuire
- June 20 - Don Gehrmann
- June 21 - Dave Schreiner
- June 22 - Chris McIntosh
- June 23 - Sidney Williams
- June 24 - Who's Next?
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