Illinois Football: The 30 greatest Illini players of all time

Illinois has had a lot of talented wide receivers come through the football program, but none of them have been better than David Williams. He is up at No. 3 on the list of the top Illinois football players in program history.

Some may dispute how high I have Williams on this list, but he is one of the best to put on an Illini uniform. He is currently the career receiving leader for the Orange and Blue with 3,392 yards in just three seasons with the program. He had 24 total touchdowns as well.

Williams leads Illinois in even more stats than just career receiving yards. He also leads the team in career receptions with 262, almost 100 more than No. 2 on the list. He caught 69 passes in 1983, 110 passes in 1984 and 92 passes in 1985 which are No. 6, No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in single-season receptions in program history.

His 24 touchdowns lead the career touchdown receptions list and his 1,278 yards in 1984 is the highest single-season receiving yardage in program history.

Somehow, Williams wasn’t in the running for the Heisman Trophy in any season he was with the Illini. But he was a First-Team All-American at wide receiver for the 1984 and 1985 campaigns and they were both consensus votes.

Illinois was able to make the 1984 Rose Bowl and the 1985 Peach Bowl while Williams was in Champaign. His presence at wide receiver was tremendous for this program. The numbers he put up and the accolades that he earned make him the No. 3 player in the history of the program.