The Los Angeles Rams selected Notre Dame running back Kyren Williams with the 164th overall pick in the fifth round of the 2022 NFL Draft (4/30/22).
College: As a junior in 2021, Williams appeared in 12 games (12 starts) and tallied 204 carries for 1,002 yards and a careerbest 14 touchdowns. He also set career-highs in catches (42) and receiving yards (359), and receiving touchdowns (three). He eclipsed the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the second straight season, becoming the first Notre Dame running back to record back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons since 2005, and the fifth Irish back in program history to accomplish the feat. That season Williams also notched seven-straight games with a rushing touchdown and had three games with multiple rushing touchdowns. He was a team captain, a Paul Hornung Award Finalist, a Doak Walker Award candidate, a Phil Steele AllAmerican honorable mention, and Phil Steele All-Independent First-Team honoree. In his first-career start at running back as a sophomore in 2020, Williams recorded 112 rushing yards on 19 carries and two touchdowns, with two receptions for 93 yards. He eclipsed the 100-yard mark for the first time in his career and was the first Notre Dame player since at least 1996 to hit the 90-yard mark in both rushing and receiving yards in a single game. He also had the most all-purpose yards (205) among FBS players in Week 1. Williams saw action in 12 games (12 starts) and rushed 211 times for 1,125 yards and 13 touchdowns. He averaged a career-best 93.8 yards rushing per game to go along with 35 catches for 313 yards and one touchdown. In a contest against Duke, Williams rushed for 185 yards, which was the fourth-highest in a single game by any ACC player that season, and the most by any freshman or sophomore ACC player that season. It was also the highest total for a Notre Dame player since 2018. Against Clemson, he became the second Irish player to rush for three touchdowns in a single game that season. In the CFP Semifinal, Williams notched his 13th rushing score of the season, the most by an Irish running back since 1998. He tied for ninth all-time in single-season rushing touchdowns among all players in Irish history. He was a FWAA Freshman of the Year Finalist, a member of the FWAA Freshman All-America team, an All-ACC Second-Team honoree, and was named Associated Press Second-Team All-ACC. Williams also was named ACC Rookie of the Year, a Doak Walker Award Finalist, and a FWAA Freshman of the Year Finalist. As a freshman in 2019, Williams saw action in the first four contests and rushed four times for 26 yards and caught one pass for three yards. He also returned a pair of kickoffs for 35 yards.
Personal: Williams' father, Larry, was a linebacker at Northern Illinois and his uncle James Gregory was a linebacker that won a national title at Alabama. During his time at St. John Vianney High School, Williams was ranked the No. 22 running back nationally and the No. 6 player from Missouri by 247Sports.com. In 2018, Williams earned the title of Missouri Football Coaches Association First-Team All-State after he registered 2,035 rushing yards, 725 receiving yards and 40 total touchdowns as a senior. He led St. John Vianney to the 2018 Class 5 Missouri State Championship and was responsible for 354 total yards, including a state championship game record 289 yards rushing. He notched 2,035 rushing yards, 725 receiving yards and 40 total touchdowns as a senior in 2018.
