SAN DIEGO — Mike T. Williams did not inspire confidence when he arrived on Boise State's campus in 2003. He was a mere 185 pounds and trying to play defensive end. He couldn't reach the team's conditioning goals. He often showed up late.
And one day after practice, all of his belongings had been removed from his locker.
"Something ain't right," Williams thought.
Williams had not made a qualifying score on the SAT and could not enroll at Boise State. He was sent home to Sacramento, Calif. His career could have been over before it started. At least one person thought it was.
"I was thinking, 'Boy, I don't know if this guy is going to make it and be our type of guy,' " said Boise State coach Chris Petersen, who was then the team's offensive coordinator.
Williams, though, was determined to make it back to school. He hired a tutor and took the SAT several times before passing it on his last chance. He wasn't cleared until after the spring semester had begun at Boise State, so Williams enrolled in August 2004 and joined the team that fall.
"I didn't want to be at home, be an average cat just chillin' at the house living with their mom," Williams said. "This is a good experience. So why waste it?"
Williams did anything but waste it. The fifth-year senior emerged from that tough beginning to become one of the program's most consistent performers and a valued member of the program.
"Mike had a tremendous career here and not just football-wise. I think about how far he's come as a student, as a person, as a teammate. He's one of the most likeable guys to be around out there. He's one of the reasons we won so much," said Petersen, who has an obvious fondness for Williams' story.
Williams will not play in Tuesday's Poinsettia Bowl against TCU after injuring his right knee in the Broncos' season finale against Fresno State. Williams tried to bat down a pass by quarterback Tom Brandstater and landed awkwardly on his right leg. Williams considered postponing surgery until after the bowl game, but doctors said he risked doing more damage to knee ligaments by playing.
Williams, who will be on the sidelines in his familiar No. 93, is the third Bronco senior in two seasons to miss the bowl game because of injuries suffered in the regular-season finale. Offensive lineman Tad Miller and cornerback/kick returner Rashaun Scott missed last year's Hawaii Bowl. Both players contacted Williams and offered encouragement after he injured his knee, a sign of the deep appreciation current and former teammates have for the popular Williams.
"He's really a pleasure to be around," senior offensive lineman Andrew Woodruff said. "I know he deserves to be playing in a game like this. He deserves to be here."
Williams cannot hide his disappointment at not being able to finish his career on the field, but he has seen his share of highs and lows throughout his career and developed a way of dealing with tough times.
"The way I think is things happen for a reason. God won't put too much on you that you can't handle. Maybe this wasn't my time to play right now," Williams said. "I just try to find the positive out of anything."
Football and the Bronco program have been forces for good in Williams' life. He learned about perseverance and proving doubters wrong. He learned the value of being on time.
"This program basically gets you prepared for life because you're accountable for everything you do," Williams said. "It's basically how life is. If you don't come to work on time, you're going to get docked pay. If you don't come to practice on time or you're late, you're not going to play."
It was his football family that helped him through one of the most difficult times in his life.
Williams' biological father Robbie Williams and his stepfather Alphonse Crittenden, with whom Williams was particularly close, passed away within two years. Crittenden's death hit Williams hard at the beginning of his junior season.
Williams also made a difference on the field. He had huge plays in the Broncos' victories against Oklahoma in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl and the 2008 road win at Oregon - two of the biggest wins in school history.
Williams had 16.5 career sacks, good for eighth in Boise State history since 1987 when it became an official stat. A second-team All-WAC selection this year, Williams, who now weighs 248 pounds, was an anchor for this year's defense, one of the best in WAC history.
He is expected to graduate in May with a degree in communication and hopes to become a radio and television producer.
The skinny 185-pounder who wanted to go to Fresno State turned out to be an ideal Bronco.
"You always have to overcome what people's expectations are of you," Williams said. "That's what this program is. Everyone says we're too small, we're from a small conference, we can't hang with big people. We always have to prove ourselves - and I feel that I do that all the time."
Williams certainly proved himself to one of the most important critics. Petersen wasn't sold on him all those years ago. That has changed.
"He's exactly our type of guy," Petersen said.
Brian Murphy: 377-6444