National Football League

Ricky Williams: I'd skip the NFL if I could do it all over again

Published Oct. 30, 2014 8:23 p.m. ET

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Former NFL running back Ricky Williams, never afraid to speak his mind, says he'd choose a different path if he were to do it all over again.

After winning the Heisman Trophy at the University of Texas in 1998, Williams decided to play in the NFL, where he'd enjoy an 11-year career.

Speaking on the NFL Network Thursday morning, Williams said if he were faced with the same decision of a future of fame and fortune or a life of internal prosperity, he'd choose the latter.

"Don't do it. Do something else," said Williams when asked what he would tell the young Williams in 1999.

"I (would) do something else," Williams said about choosing a career other than football. "Because of the career I had at Texas, I had so many doors open to me to finish up school and pretty much go anywhere in the world and do whatever I wanted to do.

"I had that open to me and I decided to play football because that seemed like the next logical choice. But some people are built for the NFL and some people aren't, and I don't think I was a person who was really built for success in the NFL." 

Williams, who led the league in rushing in 2002, always referred to football as his talent, but never his passion. Never living with regret, Williams has since returned to school and is getting his degree.

"My body feels good, my mind feels goods, so I can take advantage of all of the opportunities," he said.

(h/t Sporting News)

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