DJ Williams’ record-setting season earns All-American honors, Walter Payton finalist nod

DJ Williams turned Southern Illinois into a weekly stress test for defenses, and the numbers explain why. The Salukis’ senior quarterback finished his 2025 season with 2,846 passing yards, 22 touchdown throws, 847 rushing yards and 18 rushing scores, production that earned him third-team All-American recognition and a spot as a finalist for the Walter Payton Award.

What separated Williams from a standard big-yardage passer was the way he forced defenses to choose their poison. He completed 222 of 352 passes, a 63.0% clip, while adding an SIU quarterback program-record 847 rushing yards. His 2,846 passing yards ranked fourth in Southern Illinois history, and his 22 passing touchdowns were tied for fifth all-time. Across the FCS, he tied for fifth in rushing touchdowns and total offense at 307.8 yards per game, finished second in points responsible for with 246, seventh in total points scored with 110, 11th in passing yards and 18th in passing touchdowns.

That blend made Williams more than a productive quarterback. It made Southern Illinois dangerous. He was named the Missouri Valley Football Conference’s third-place finisher in Offensive Player of the Year voting, and he finished eighth in Walter Payton Award balloting, a finish that placed him among the national names most capable of swinging a race in the country’s toughest FCS league. For a program that had not produced a Payton finalist since Mark Iannotti in 2015, Williams’ rise underscored how far he pushed the Salukis’ ceiling.

His breakout signature moment came Sept. 20 at Southeast Missouri State, when he became the first Southern Illinois quarterback ever to surpass 300 passing yards and 150 rushing yards in the same game. That performance earned him Stats Perform FCS National Offensive Player of the Week honors on Sept. 22 and captured the profile that defined his season: a quarterback who could beat a defense from the pocket, then punish it when it opened the field.

Williams arrived in Carbondale from Murray State, where he had already won the Ohio Valley Conference Freshman of the Year award in 2021 after throwing for 1,020 yards and rushing for 532 with 10 total touchdowns. Injuries disrupted his 2022 season against Texas Tech, but he returned to a starting role in 2023 and passed for 1,529 yards and 11 touchdowns, setting up the breakout that followed.

Southern Illinois announced on Jan. 5, 2026 that Williams would return in 2026, and he made clear what he is chasing next: “win a championship now.” With his passing volume, red-zone production and run-game threat, Williams has already shown he belongs in the tier of quarterbacks who can shape both a conference title chase and a playoff run.