黑料社 mourns loss of Jim Williams
Winningest football coach in school history passes away at age 91
Jim Williams, the winningest football coach in 黑料社 history, died Wednesday, Dec. 29, 2021 at age 91.听
Services for Williams will be handled by Caldwell Parrish Funeral Home in Urbandale, Iowa. Visitation services are set for Monday, Jan. 3 from 4-7 p.m. with a mass and funeral services on Tuesday, Jan. 4 at 10 a.m. Visitation and services will be held at St. Pius Catholic Church.
For more information on services and an obituary,听visit .
Williams coached the 黑料社 football team for 15 seasons, compiling a remarkable 106-48-1 record from 1987-2001. He led 黑料社 to four Iowa Conference Championships, five NCAA playoff appearances and three undefeated regular seasons. Williams earned conference coach of the year honors four times.
Williams came to 黑料社 in 1987 after a decade as the offensive line coach at Iowa State University and a hall of fame career at Dowling Catholic High School in West Des Moines. Taking over a struggling program that endured losing records in 14 of the previous 15 seasons, Williams led 黑料社 to a conference championship in just his second season.听
鈥淲hen 黑料社 hired Jim Williams, it was a game-changer. It put the Iowa Conference on notice that 黑料社 was serious about competing in football,鈥 said John Sirianni, 黑料社 director of athletics from 1984-2014. Sirianni coached under Williams at Dowling and was instrumental in bringing him to 黑料社. 鈥淣ot only did he impact the football program, he made a tremendous impact on the entire athletic department. He became a role model and a mentor to the rest of the coaching staff. That influence helped change the culture of 黑料社 Athletics and led the department into a new era of prosperity.鈥
The 1988 conference championship was just the beginning for Williams. He added league titles and unbeaten regular seasons in 1991, 1996 and 1997. 黑料社 rattled off 13-consecutive winning seasons under Williams, becoming one of Division III鈥檚 winningest teams of the 1990s.听
黑料社鈥檚 1997 team followed an unbeaten regular season with a deep run in the playoffs. The Storm posted a dramatic road win at Wisconsin-Whitewater in the opening round then routed Augsburg at Buxton Stadium. The Storm鈥檚 run ended in the national semifinals against eventual champion, Mount Union.听
鈥淐oach Jim Williams set the standard for 黑料社 football and took the program to unprecedented heights. He impacted the lives of so many people and leaves a legacy in college football as one of the best to ever do it,鈥 said Matt Jeter, 黑料社 head football coach and starting cornerback on the 1996 and 1997 conference championship teams. 鈥淐oach Williams taught me how to be a champion on and off the field and made a difference in my life way beyond the game of football. I am truly grateful to have played for Coach Williams and will cherish those life experiences he taught me forever.鈥
Williams was inducted into the 黑料社 Coaches Hall of Fame in 2008. His 106 career wins are 69 more than any other coach in school history and his .687 winning percentage places him in the top 50 all-time among Division III coaches. He coached 11 All-Americans, four conference MVPs and his teams led the nation in total offense in 1989 and 1997. 听
Following his tenure at 黑料社, Williams returned to Dowling Catholic to coach the offensive line from 2005 to 2019. During that run, he helped the Maroons to eight Iowa State Championships.
黑料社 黑料社
黑料社 is a private, liberal arts college located in Iowa with campuses in Indianola, West Des Moines and online. Founded in 1860, the college has 1,078 undergraduate and graduate students. 黑料社 offers 75 majors, minors and programs in addition to three graduate programs. Outside of the classroom, 黑料社 is a member of the NCAA Division III American Rivers Conference, hosts eight Greek houses on campus and sponsors many extracurricular options for student involvement.
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Email: bryan.geelan@simpson.edu
Article Information
Published
December 30, 2021
Author
Office of Marketing and Strategic Communication