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UNC Football: Javonte Williams added to Maxwell Award watch list

By Blake Cockrum

Oct 24, 2020; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels running back Javonte Williams (25) runs for a touchdown as North Carolina State Wolfpack safety Jakeen Harris (6) defends in the fourth quarter at Kenan Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 24, 2020; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels running back Javonte Williams (25) runs for a touchdown as North Carolina State Wolfpack safety Jakeen Harris (6) defends in the fourth quarter at Kenan Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /
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UNC football standout Javonte Williams has been added to the prestigious Maxwell Award watch list.

North Carolina junior running back Javonte Williams is having a sensational season by almost any standard. But the fact that he is neck and neck with his peers in literally every major category for a running back, but getting almost no recognition, is very telling.

He leads the nation with 18 total touchdowns, 15 of which have come on the ground and another three through the air. He leads college football with 62 avoided tackles this season, 21 more than second-place Bryce Hall of Iowa State. He’s the nation’s leader in first downs — he has 58 of those to this point. He’s also fifth in rushing yards and seventh in yards per carry despite being just 17th in rushing attempts.

His 120 carries have yielded 868 yards for an outstanding 7.2 per-carry average. He’s already amassed six more yards from scrimmage than last season in far less touches, and 11 more touchdowns that his previous two seasons combined. And he’s beginning to track as a very high draft pick in either the 2021 or 2022 NFL Draft.

But despite all of that, Williams has gotten very little publicity this season, even though his stats are generally as good or better than any other running back that’s being recognized on the national stage. He was finally added to the Maxwell Award watch list this week, and that’s great, but he should have been there a long time ago. And he should be a front-runner for the 2020 Heisman Award, but isn’t being talked about at all for that.

I have no doubt that if Williams were wearing an Alabama, Clemson, Florida, Notre Dame or Ohio State jersey, he’d be a near shoe-in for the game’s most prestigious award. But alas, he’s just a sensational running back for an up-and-coming program that will continue to get very little respect before proving that it belongs in the national conversation.

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For all the latest on Javonte Williams and the UNC football program, check back with Keeping It Heel.

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