Tom Allen Gives Injury Update on Dexter Williams II: 'Further Along Than We Thought'
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Quarterback Dexter Williams II was the silver lining to Indiana's 4-8 season in 2022.
Even as the Hoosiers had stumbled to another dismal losing season, the redshirt freshman quarterback burst onto the scene late in the year, eventually taking hold of the starting job. Williams II was far from an accurate passer, finishing the season with 13 completions on 38 pass attempts for 184 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.
However, what Williams II offered in the run game was such a game changer for Indiana that it made up for almost all of his passing woes. In just four games, he carried the ball 40 times for 161 yards, and in the Hoosiers' upset win over Michigan State, he ran for 86 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.
Unfortunately, for all the hope Williams II offered Indiana toward the end of the 2022 season, it was immediately ripped away in the season finale against Purdue. On a routine drop back with IU leading 7-3, the young quarterback collapsed to the ground without being touched by a single other player on the field, tearing his right ACL and putting him on a long track to recovery.
It was an awful way to end the season, but some good news has come out this offseason, most recently on Wednesday.
Coach Tom Allen spoke to media and said that Williams II is throwing at fall camp practices, and that his injury recovery is going better than expected.
"He's further along that we thought, and he's further along that he thought he would be," Allen said. "[He] just had his final check-up prior to fall camp, and it came back very positive. And so from that meeting that he had with his doctors, we felt like we could accelerate things for fall camp, and so he's been out there taking reps."
Williams II, still wearing a blue, non-contact jersey, will not take the field for IU on Sept. 2, when Allen and Co. welcome the highly touted Ohio State Buckeyes to Bloomington for the season opener. It will either be Tennessee transfer Tayven Jackson, the younger brother of Indiana basketball star Trayce Jackson-Davis, or fellow redshirt freshman Brendan Sorsby.
Between the young quarterbacks, one will lead the Hoosiers at the start of the season, but Allen was optimistic that Williams II will return sooner rather than later.
"I would say for sure [by] midseason, [or] a couple of weeks earlier than that, if possible," Allen said, giving an estimate as to when Williams II might return to live game action. "So midseason, to me, would be a good projection, but it may even continue, if he progresses at the rate that he is currently, he could be in a game or two before that as well."
Indiana does not want to rush Williams II back, knowing how scary a lower body, non-contact injury like that can be. The small, potential short term gain from playing Williams II before he's ready is far outweighed by the long term benefits of being as patient as possible.
Regardless, it's hard for Allen and the team to not get excited about how well Williams II seems to be doing in his recovery. He's beloved by his teammates and coaches, both for what he can do on the field, and what he's like off of it.
"He's been feeling pretty good, there's no question," Allen said. "But because there's so much with your lower body that affects your throwing, he's still kind of had to get used to that. He's had some soreness in his knee and other areas that you got to get ready when you're going through the whole process of playing."
"Teammates, coaches and everyone on the staff are pulling for the kid because of what he's been through."
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