By Bob Sutton
Special to The Alamance News
Professional football has taken Torrence Williams to some far reaches of the country.
That’s a good thing for the former high school player at Williams and college player for Elon.
And he’s still going.
Williams has played two seasons of indoor or arena football. He’s back home for another offseason from those ventures, continuing in a role as an assistant coach on the high school staff for the Williams Bulldogs.
“I’ve still got dreams of continuing to keep going,” the defensive tackle said. “I got at least a good three, four years left.”
Williams completed his college career in 2022 with Elon. From there, he attended tryouts for the Canadian Football League and later with the Philadelphia Soul in arena football.
While those didn’t pan out, he ended up driving to Park City, Kansas, for what resulted in a spot on the Wichita Regulators in 2024 in the Arena Football League. He also played that year for the now-defunct Duke City Gladiators in Rio Rancho, New Mexico, (an Albuquerque suburb) in the Indoor Football League.
“I decided I was going to start at the bottom,” Williams said. “I made connections, made friends. Prior to that, I didn’t know anybody.”
Indoor or arena seasons generally begin in the late winter and continue to late spring or summer, filling voids in the non-traditional football window.
So this year Williams was in a newly-formed Arena Football One (or AF1) with the Corpus Christi Tritons in Texas and Salina Liberty in Kansas. The arena in Salina seats about 7,600 spectators.
“I’ve been all over,” he said. “I’ve experienced places like California and Washington state. I get to see and experience a lot of cultures. That has been the best part, and making new connections.”
Willams, 25, is 6-foot-2 and 315 pounds. He said his best season came with Salina when he recorded 11 sacks in 10 games. He received AF1 Defensive Player of the Week honors for a May 31 performance against the Washington Wolfpack.
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He has mostly been at the tackle or nose guard position, though he has occasionally filled spots at linebacker and even been on the field for offensive snaps.
“I ended up playing a few other positions here and there,” he said. “I’ve done a little bit of everything.”
Because of the reduced field size compared to outdoor games, there are adjustments for players. Eight players are on the field for each team.
“To me, it’s a lot more fast-paced because everything is so short,” Williams said. “It’s a little bit more physical, and the wall is undefeated.”
He said he’s proud that he held co-captain roles with a couple of his indoor teams.
Williams said he expects to sign another contract in the late fall when arena teams are most apt to be putting together their rosters. In the meantime, he works a delivery job in the Triad in addition to helping at his alma mater.
Williams is beginning his third season on the Williams Bulldogs staff. He coaches tight ends.
