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Coaching Highlights
• Former ACC wide receiver enters his third season as Tech’s wide receivers coach in 2021.
• One of several other members of the current Tech coaching staff who once spent time on Denver Johnson’s staff at Illinois State, including head coach Justin Fuente, as well as offensive coordinator/QBs coach Brad Cornelsen and offensive line coach Vance Vice.
• WR Tre Turner continued his development under Williams’ tutelage in 2019, leading the squad with 34 receptions for 553 yards as a true sophomore.
• Turner registered two of Tech’s individual 100-yard receiving games in 2019, racking up 106 yards vs. UNC (10/19/19) and 134 at Virginia (11/29/19). He also ran the ball 24 times for 231 yards with one TD.
• Williams was also instrumental in helping a pair of freshmen make immediate contributions for the Hokies a year ago. WR Tayvion Robinson tied for second on the squad with 31 receptions, registering 404 yards with one TD.
• Robinson earned a spot on the PFF College All-Freshman Team in 2019 as a punt returner after running back 13 punts for 185 yards (14.2 avg.). He also averaged 12.0 yards per carry as a runner.
• Redshirt freshman WR Kaleb Smith also made an immediate impact for Tech in 2019, catching four passes for 62 yards with a TD in his initial game on offense at Boston College (8/31/19).
• Thanks to Williams’ receiving unit, Tech led the ACC and ranked sixth among Power Five squads with a 94.5 Red Zone scoring percentage in 2019. The Hokies scored on 52 of 55 Red Zone trips and posted a 71.2 Red Zone touchdown percentage.
• “I knew the qualities we wanted in an assistant coach and recruiter to fill this position,” Fuente said upon hiring Williams in 2019. “Jafar possesses familiarity with our offensive philosophy, as well as our coaching style and expectations. Jafar has been through the recruiting process as a player and a student-athlete and has built solid relationships across our region. He has also paid his dues in the coaching ranks, gained experience in a variety of different positions during his career. We’re excited about him joining our coaching staff at Virginia Tech.”
• Williams arrived in Blacksburg after spending the 2018 campaign coaching running backs at his alma mater, the University of Maryland.
• During his coaching stint with the Terrapins he mentored a prolific rushing duo as Anthony McFarland (7.9) and Ty Johnson (7.7) ranked second and third respectively in the Big Ten in yards-per-carry average in 2018.
• Under Williams’ tutelage, McFarland led Maryland in rushing with 131 carries for 1,034 yards, breaking the school’s freshman rushing yardage record.
• Owning a diverse coaching background, Williams coached wide receivers at Rutgers in 2016-17. In 2016, WR Jawuan Harris led all Big Ten freshmen with 39 catches for 481 yards.
• As running backs coach at Purdue (2013-15), he helped RB Markell Jones set the school’s freshman rushing record with 875 yards in 2015. His 72.9 yards-per-game rushing average ranked eighth in the Big Ten, while his 10 rushing TDs led the Boilermakers.
• In 2014, RB Akeem Hunt led Purdue with 949 rushing yards and ranked eighth in the Big Ten by averaging 79.1 rushing ypg under Williams’ tutelage.
• After a one-year stint as special teams quality control coach for Pat Fitzgerald at Northwestern (2010), he spent two seasons as running backs coach at Kent State (2011-12). The Golden Flashes went 11-3 in 2012 and earned the MAC’s East Division title with an 8-0 conference record.
• Williams coached one of the nation’s most productive rushing duos in RBs Dri Archer and Traylon Durham, who combined to rush for 2,745 yards and 30 touchdowns for Kent State in 2012.
• Archer led Kent State with 1,429 rushing yards and also hauled in a team-high 39 receptions for 561 yards with four touchdowns, while returning 16 kickoffs for 591 yards with three TDs to earn consensus All-America honors.
• Durham finished with 1,316 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns, as the team ranked 18th nationally in rushing offense (225.8 ypg).
• In 2009, he coached wide receivers at Howard University, where WR Willie Carter earned second-team All-Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference acclaim after leading the Bison with 46 catches for 630 yards with a team-high six total TDs.
• Enjoyed a two-year stint as wide receivers coach at Illinois State (2007-08), where WR Eyad Salem earned first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors in 2008 after leading the squad with 63 catches for 843 yards and eight TDs.
• WR Jason Horton received second-team All-MVC accolades under his tutelage at Illinois State in 2017 after he and Salem combined for 71 catches for 1,037 yards and eight TD catches.
• Began his coaching career as passing game coordinator/wide receivers coach at Moravian College in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in 2005, helping guide the squad to its first-ever conference title.
• Graduated from Maryland with a degree in health and human performance.
Prominent Pupils
WR WILLIE CARTER
Howard Second-team All-Mid-Eastern Conference in 2009.
RB DRI ARCHER D3-2014 – Pittsburgh
Kent State 2013 Consensus All-America selection. Played in 20 games for Steelers (2014-15).
WR JASON HORTON
Illinois State Second-team All-Missouri Valley Conference in 2007.
RB AKEEM HUNT FA-2015 – N.Y. Giants
Purdue Played in 31 NFL games with Texans (2015-16) and Chiefs (2017).
RB MARKELL JONES
Purdue Set Purdue’s single-season freshman rushing record with 875 yards in 2015.
WR ANDRE PATTON FA-2017 – L.A. Chargers
Rutgers Spent portions of the 2017 & 2018 seasons on the Chargers’ practice squad.
WR TAYVION ROBINSON
Virginia Tech First-team punt returner on PFF College All-Freshman Team, caught 31 passes for 404 yards with one TD in 2019.
WR EYAD SALEM
Illinois State First-team All-Missouri Valley Conference in 2008.
WR TRE TURNER
Virginia Tech Caught 34 passes for 553 yards with four TDs in 2019.
Playing Highlights
• Played in 44 games at Maryland, finishing his career with 90 catches for 1,301 yards (14.5 avg.) with seven TDs, including a 64-yard score in the 2002 Orange Bowl.
• Averaged 20.07 yards per catch for the Terrapins in 2002, the third-best seasonal mark in school history.
• Prepped at Philadelphia’s George Washington High School where he was an all-city, all-metro and all-area selection as a senior in 1998. Was one of 10 Philadelphia area players to receive a Maxwell Award for academic and athletic excellence.
• Team captain caught 38 passes for 560 yards with eight TDs playing in a Wing-T offense as a high school senior. Added three INTs on defense and also lettered in track.
