Williams makes the most of his opportunities

Tue. November 15, 2011 at 12:58 a.m. | By Jason Queen

For anyone other than Shaquan Johnson, chances to touch the ball in the Thomasville offense don’t come around very often.
Quindale Williams certainly made the most of those chances Friday night.
Williams caught one pass for a 65-yard touchdown and had one carry for a 63-yard touchdown to lead the Bulldogs to a 28-16 win over Wilkes Central in the second round of the 2-A state playoffs. Those big plays helped Thomasville erase a 3-0 halftime deficit and march into a third-round matchup this Friday with Central Carolina Conference rival Salisbury. Because of Williams’ heroics, the Hornets won’t be able to focus in on stopping Johnson, who normally runs the ball 40-plus times for the Bulldogs.
Not getting to touch the ball very often is just fine with Williams who, like a lot of his teammates, also starts on defense. “I have to be ready for anything,” Williams said. “I can block, catch, everything.”
That mostly involved blocking in the first half against the Eagles.
But the Bulldogs couldn’t put any points on the board in the first half and went into the locker room at halftime down 3-0. But they were setting Wilkes Central up for a couple of key plays in the game plan for the second half, and it worked to perfection. “Same game plan, we were gonna run the ball,” he said. “We wanted No. 18 (Central star safety Dustin Triplett) to play overaggressive and then beat them with the pass a couple times.”
And they wasted little time doing it after the intermission. “At halftime, they said that was gonna be the first play we came out with,” Williams said. Down 3-0, with every eye in Cushwa stadium shifting to a ball in the air and a wide receiver streaking down the middle of the field, Williams only had one thought. “I just had to make the catch,” Williams said.
“No. 18 kept blitzing, so I knew I had one-on-one coverage with the corner. I ran a post, and it was a good pass, right in stride, so I just kept going. I was getting into the end zone.”
Indeed. Quarterback Shakeem Peterson hooked up perfectly with Williams, and the game was never the same. Later, with Thomasville leading 14-3 late in the third quarter, Williams came in at tailback to give Johnson a small breather. But it turned out huge. He took a sweep to the right edge and raced 65 yards to paydirt, and the Bulldogs were moving on.
Williams showed that explosiveness despite putting in a full night’s work at cornerback. “It’s hard work,” he said. “You have to put in extra work to be able to go both ways and not be tired.
“We have to practice hard just to get ready for it.”
That leaves the Bulldogs with a chance to keep moving toward their annual goal of winning a state championship. The road gets tougher Friday night, with Salisbury set to invade Cushwa Stadium. If Williams has anything to do with it, the home team will keep rolling on.

Jason Queen can be reached at 249-3981, ext. 220 or jason.queen@the-dispatch.com.