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Hempstead's Williams a one-man work force

BY DARREN SANDS | darren.sands@newsday.com

September 14, 2008

Hempstead coach Antoine Moore and his assistant, Michael Roberts, get a little nostalgic when Terrell Williams bursts through a hole in practice or pushes the team to run an extra mile or asks his assistant coach to help him work out.

"He reminds me of many of the guys that I played with during my playing days," Moore said.

"When you get a kid like Terrell to ask you something like that, how can you say no?" Roberts said laughing jovially.

Those who are around him believe that Williams' attitude is a throwback to Hempstead's glory days. That's why Roberts invited Williams to his home to watch the Super Bowl with about 10-15 of his closest friends - former players and teammates who aren't shy about giving their opinion about the Hempstead program and what it will take to get it back to prominence in Conference I.

"It's like sitting next to your own teammates," Williams said of the experience. "We'll sit back and reminisce about what they did, what I did and just compare. They like to talk about back in the day when we were winning. We're all just a family. They encourage me and tease me at the same time."

Williams' acceptance into the fraternity wasn't only because of his eye-popping numbers that nearly earned him the Thorp Award last year. The fraternity likes the way he works. This past summer, Williams was pushed, pulled and prodded to work harder than he ever did. Williams improved his time in the 40-yard dash from 4.5 to a 4.39, and will be listed at 5-8 and 192 pounds, up seven from last year.

When he wasn't playing point guard as the leading scorer for his team in the Rob Moore Foundation Basketball League, he was in voluntary 6 a.m. workouts with the football team. All of that and he still found time to earn a paycheck from the Village of Hempstead. He did landscaping with Roberts.

"Obviously he's talented," said Moore, "but all of that is supplemented by his work ethic."

Williams put himself through a strenuous calisthenic workout in Hempstead's Kennedy Park this summer to improve his endurance because this season, he doesn't want to come out of a game.

Williams' electric speed helped him to 1,834 all-purpose yards and 18 touchdowns last year. But he'll need the added strength to be more of an impact player on defense. As a linebacker he finished second on the team with 77 tackles. He had two interceptions and three fumble recoveries.

"I'm going to tell you that in a team sport, any one great player can not determine the outcome of a game," said Hempstead Athletic Director Dr. Robert Cincotta. "As great as he is as an individual athlete, it is going to be the team that's going to win as a whole. But he's very important to what our team goals are."

The real challenge for Williams and Co. may be trying to answer the questions surrounding whether the current squad can live up to Hempstead's legacy as a one-time powerhouse. And there is the expectation Williams will be a favorite for the Thorp Award this year.

Roberts and Moore, who finished as runners-up in Thorp Award voting in 1982 and 1987, know what high expectations are all about. And both take pains to tell Williams what it took to play championship caliber football.

"When they talk about it, I think about what I can do to make my team better," Williams said, adding that the common thread in their stories is how well rounded those teams were in all phases of the game. "So we've got to work hard everyday. We're ready."

How do you know?

"Because of our work ethic," he said. "Everybody shows up, no matter what, no exceptions. We're ready for anything. And if someone is slacking up, we're running."