Notre Dame Fighting Irish defensive lineman Ishaq Williams missed all of last season after having to withdraw in the midst of an academic dishonesty investigation involving himself and other players and though he has been reinstated, his status with the team may not be known until the start of the 2015 season.
In a mailbag post on NBC Sports’ Inside the Irish, Keith Arnold offered some clarity to a fan who inquired on Williams’ status.
As Brian Kelly pointed out, this is an NCAA issue now. So I’m putting the window at roughly 48 hours before opening kickoff against Texas. (I wish I was kidding.)
While the details of this situation are still really hard to pin down, Williams is likely dealing with some retroactive GPA issues, especially if there were multiple courses in question. But the fact that Notre Dame is working (and I’m assuming, on Williams’ behalf) with the folks in Indianapolis about a way to get Williams back on the field is at least promising.
I’m hoping it works out for Williams, who I still think has an NFL future, even if he only spends the season on the scout team.
A former four-star recruit out of Lincoln High School in Brooklyn, Williams has 45 tackles, a sack and a forced fumble across three seasons with Notre Dame, starting in only one of those years. Should he be cleared to play, he will have one season of eligibility remaining. With excellent size at 6-foot-6, 271 pounds, not to mention a great deal of talent, here’s hoping he can get his head screwed on straight and play well in his senior year so that he may have a shot at moving on to the NFL with momentum at his back.
Notre Dame opens the season at home against Texas on September 5.
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*Featured Photo (above) credit to USA TODAY Sports
