The Arkansas Razorbacks don’t have a whole lot of positives so far this season, but senior running back David Williams is one of the few bright spots.

The Razorbacks’ running back unit lost some depth in the offseason when Rawleigh Williams III retired and Juan Day transferred to Stephen F. Austin. Both of those decisions came in May.

Arkansas needed to add more depth to that position group — enter David Williams. The former South Carolina running back looked like he was going to transfer to UConn. Instead, he became a member of the Razorbacks in June.

https://twitter.com/D_will33/status/875868707242815490

 

“I knew I wanted somebody with little bit more maturity the room,” Bret Bielema told media members at SEC media days in July. “That presented an opportunity to talk to David.”

At 6 feet 220 pounds, the graduate transfer was eligible to play immediately. He finished his career at South Carolina with 188 carries for 794 yards and five rushing touchdowns and had been on Bielema’s radar for a while.

“I met David when I was at Wisconsin, and he actually visited me when I was there,” Bielema said.

Williams had five career touchdowns at South Carolina -- all rushing -- in three seasons. In three games at Arkansas he has equaled that total with four scores rushing and one receiving.

Bielema and offensive coordinator Dan Enos have entrusted Williams with the majority of the goal-line carries this season. Williams has already surpassed the three rushing touchdowns he garnered in 2016 with the Gamecocks. Williams has 156 yards on 28 carries this season with four rushing touchdowns and a TD reception. He has racked up those stats splitting time with talented freshman Chase Hayden and sophomore Devwah Whaley.

Whaley hasn’t stepped up like many thought he would, and Hayden is unreliable in pass protection as a true freshman. Williams has done a nice job of filling the role of a veteran running back. He started his campaign at Arkansas with a solid performance against Florida A&M, scoring two touchdowns.

In Week 2, Arkansas struggled against TCU on the ground. Williams had a couple of breakout runs in the third quarter to spark the Razorbacks’ offense, but his impact wasn’t continuous throughout the game. The Horned Frogs held him in check, but he still averaged 6.5 yards per carry.

The Arkansas running game looked much stronger Saturday against Texas A&M, with Williams doing most of the damage. The Razorbacks compiled 226 yards and three touchdowns on the ground and averaged 5.0 yards per carry.

Williams had 68 yards on 11 carries and was given the first handoff during the first quarter over Whaley and Hayden. He broke open his three-touchdown day with a 2-yard receiving touchdown from backup quarterback Cole Kelley. Enos used Kelley several times in this game as a runner, so the play-action pass was a masterful call to get Williams into the end zone.

Williams wasn’t done penetrating the Aggies’ defense. Williams plowed ahead for a 1-yard touchdown to put the Razorbacks up 27-24 near the end of the third quarter.

With less than four minutes to go, Williams came up big in the fourth quarter with another rushing touchdown. It could have been the winning touchdown, but the Razorbacks allowed Texas A&M to go down and score a field goal; the Aggies won in overtime.

Williams doesn’t have the talent of Rawleigh Williams, Alex Collins, Jonathan Williams and Bielema’s other former running backs, but he has made the most of his chances. As long as he produces, Enos will keep feeding him the ball, especially in the red zone, where has been most dangerous.

Arkansas has spread its rushing workload almost exactly equally among three backs: David Williams has 28 carries; Devwah Whaley and Chase Hayden have 29 each.

By season’s end, Williams could be the starting running back. Right now, he is listed as the backup behind Whaley. Many expected freshman Maleek Williams to be featured in 2017, but David Williams’ strong play has kept him from seeing the field.

It remains to be seen if Gamecocks coach Will Muschamp regrets letting Williams become a member of the Razorbacks. Bielema was pleased that the South Carolina coach was willing to let Williams join Arkansas, despite having the Razorbacks on the schedule in 2017.

“Credit Coach Muschamp,” he said. “They didn’t try to block him or anything.”

Arkansas travels to South Carolina on Oct. 7.