When Jonah Williams was about 12, he began building a weight room in his parents basement in suburban Atlanta.The tall preteen was all elbows and kneecaps back then. He thought he was too skinny, and rather than wait for nature to run its course, he decided to escalate the process.Katherine, his mother, said he would eat and eat and eat. And before long, her quiet, introspective son had morphed into someone different. He was born big -- just shy of 11 pounds and 22 inches long -- but suddenly he was growing in leaps and bounds into the 6-foot-5, 290-pound behemoth hed become.Hed always had an intensity about him, but Katherine started to sense an aggression in him when he played sports. Seeing him defend the net as a fullback in soccer, guard the rim as a center in basketball or shield the quarterback at offensive tackle in football, she began to put two and two together.Put him on [the] athletic field and it comes out: the protection, she said.Alabama fans have seen it during every one of the Crimson Tides 13 games this season: Williams protecting fellow freshman Jalen Hurts. Hurts has gotten all the acclaim as a true freshman QB starting on the No. 1-ranked team in college football, but Williams has been arguably the more consistent player. It feels as if every week the right tackle has been part of the staffs players of the week. Hes already a member of the SEC All-Freshman Team and is a mortal lock to become a consensus freshman All-American.But neither Williams, his mother nor his former high school coach are shocked that he has been able to have this much success so soon. When asked whether they were even a little bit surprised, their response inevitably began with, No, but ...If Jonah sets a goal, Katherine said, its hard to deter him from that.Said Williams: Ive always wanted to compete and just work to earn everything.That competitiveness, Katherine said, is innate. But it was also nurtured by a mother who played tennis and a father who swam and played offensive line in high school. She went to school at Auburn and he at Georgia, so college football has always been a part of the familys life.A job opportunity led the family to move from Atlanta to California after Williams freshman year of high school, and he settled in at Folsom High after a semester at another local high school.When Folsom football coach Kris Richardson first laid eyes on Williams, he was stunned.You could see right away he had the physical tools: quick feet, an explosive lower body, a freak in the weight room, Richardson said. But he was really raw and didnt have a lot of technique. ... His idea of football was to grab and kick and throw people to the ground. Im like, Jonah, for one, these are your own teammates. Lets not throw our own guys to the ground all the time. And two, when you throw kids thats not really blocking.Even if he didnt want to become a technician, Richardson said Williams would have been fine living off his natural ability. In fact, before his first game on varsity, Cal was so impressed that it offered him a scholarship on the spot.But Williams did want to learn the finer points of playing the position. By Saturday morning, hed already be done watching the game tape from the night before and Richardson would wake to a dozen or so text messages from his star left tackle.On play 22, I took my step wrong, Williams would write, according to Richardson. On play 25, my hands werent inside.Richardson would reply, and Williams would inevitably be in the weight room working out. Richardson held him back as best he could, but he still benched more than 500 pounds and squatted more than 600.Very serious. Very mature, Richardson said of Williams. His work ethic is off the charts. Thats just who he is as a person.During Williams junior season, he would protect the blindside of future Washington quarterback Jake Browning. Folsom won the state title that year and Williams wound up with scholarship offers from every school that saw him play, Richardson said.If you want to entertain yourself, pull up his high school highlight tape, Richardson said. He was killing kids. It was not fair.He even played defensive line on occasion and dominated there, too.Hes going to go down as one of Sacramentos all-time greatest, said Richardson, who has been head coach at Folsom for 12 years and was an assistant there for nearly a decade before that.But the best thing about Williams, Richardson said, was how he handled the recruiting process. He had one tweet about it, and it was the one where he announced his commitment to Alabama. And before he sent that out, he called every head coach who offered him a scholarship to personally relay his decision.Williams graduated early and enrolled at Alabama in January.I came in and found a place that suits me and my personality, my work ethic, Williams said.In a bit of foreshadowing, he said that, I wouldnt recommend someone come here if theyre not willing to work hard.If there was one thing players noticed about Williams right away, it was his attitude in the weight room. He didnt chafe at the shrill whistle of strength coach Scott Cochran at 6:30 a.m. Instead, he seemed to love it.He lives in there, said veteran guard Ross Pierschbacher, and it shows.Williams and Pierschabacher would become workout buddies as well as friends off the field.Pierschabacher said that hell try to watch other college football games as a fan and inevitably Williams will spoil it, yapping in his ear about, Oh, they ran this blitz and that stunt and they should have done this.Its like watching film next to [offensive line coach Brent Key], Pierschabacher said. I just want to relax a little bit.He added: I just think thats how hes built and thats whats making him so successful; hes just got that great football mind.Senior defensive tackle Jonathan Allen marvels at Williams technique and said that he plays beyond his age.Junior defensive end DaShawn Hand said there are times when he forgets that hes a freshman, too.That dude is going to be a monster, Hand said. Just wait. Youll see.According to Pro Football Focus, Williams graded higher than Alabamas junior left tackle?Cam Robinson, a player many expect to be taken in the first round of next years draftThe future finance major isnt done yet. On Dec. 31, Williams will introduce himself to an even larger audience when No. 1-ranked Alabama plays in the College Football Playoff semifinal game at the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl in Atlanta (3 p.m. ET, ESPN).The opponent: No. 4 Washington and Williams former teammate, Browning.Theyre good friends, Katherine said. Hes excited about it. Hes proud of Jake and his accomplishments, but at the same time this is going to be fun. This is the Pac-12 versus the SEC.Katherine said she was thankful that since Williams and Browning both play offense, there wont be any physical altercation between the friends. Not that Williams wouldnt be ready.When Katherine spoke for this story, Alabama had just ended its fall semester and players were able to go home before practice started back up. And where was Williams on his day off? At the local recreation center lifting weights.When he got home, Katherine said that her son, an avid reader, would start his next book: Meditations by Marcus Aurelius.Its heady stuff for a freshman in college, but Williams isnt your typical freshman.Hes like a 28-year-old man and not an 18-year-old kid, Richardson said. NFL Jerseys Cheap . Louis. To which I would say two things: 1. Where there is smoke, there is or perhaps has been a little fire. Or, in other words, the two teams would appear to have at least spoken. And spoken is defined as one calling the other to inquire, no more, no less. Cheap China Authentic Jerseys . And follow TSN.ca right through Deadline Day for all the updates. 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San Diego State is about to do something it hasnt done in 21 years -- play a game as a ranked program.The No. 19 Aztecs went 341 polls without being ranked before cracking the rankings Sept. 18 and aim not to stumble when they visit South Alabama in Mobile, Ala., on Saturday (8 p.m. ET, ESPNews).San Diego State didnt remain ranked very long back in 1995. The Aztecs fell out as quickly as they climbed in by losing 34-31 to Wyoming.But San Diego State, which didnt play last week, is back among the elite and intends to hang around a lot longer this time around.It feels great to just be able to get the recognition we felt we deserved, standout senior running back Donnel Pumphrey said. Our team, we expected it. Were all happy and were ready for the next test -- which is South Alabama.Oh yeah, South Alabama.This San Diego State squad should have plenty of motivation when it comes to avoiding the upset. You see, the Jaguars (2-2) defeated the Aztecs 34-27 in overtime last season in San Diego.San Diego State players and coaches sure dont need much reminding of that defeat.Anytime somebody beats you, you relish the chance to return the favor, Aztecs coach Rocky Long said. My idea that last years game was two teams of similar playing ability was exactly wrong. They outplayed us bad. You have to give them credit.South Alabama senior outside linebacker Roman Buchanan is interested in making it consecutive wins over the Aztecs. He also expects to confront an angry group of San Diego State players.Theyre definitely gunning for us, Buchanan said. I would expect nothing less than that. Theyre a really good team, and they dont take lightly somebody coming into their house and beating them. So they definitely want to return the favor.The Aztecs (3-0) are streaking as they enter the rematch. They have won their past 13 games -- second best in the nation behind top-ranked Alabama (16) -- and have won 11 of those by 14 or more points.Another victory would give the program its first 4-0 start since 1981.Not only is San Diego State gaining rare national attention, Pumphrey leads the nation in rushing yards per game (199.7) and is receiving mention as a possible top-fivve Heisman Trophy finisher.ddddddddddddumphrey recently surpassed Marshall Faulks school career rushing mark of 4,589 yards and that has elevated his status and increased his national profile. He has 4,871 rushing yards and 52 touchdowns -- including 599 yards and seven touchdowns in three games this season.The 5-foot-9, 180-pound Pumphrey is only 129 yards away from becoming the 21st player in college football history to rush for 5,000 career yards.He kind of reminds me of Reggie Bush, he is that type of back, South Alabama coach Joey Jones said in reference to the former USC star and current NFL player. He is what I call a one-step cutter, he can be running full speed and it only takes him one step to change direction at a great angle.He has the speed to take it home, if you miss him and he gets out in the open field he can score from 60, 80 yards out. Hes a guy who can make big plays.South Alabama did a capable job on Pumphrey last season. Pumphrey finished with 102 rushing yards but needed 28 carries to reach that total.Buchanan and senior safety Kalen Jackson are tied for the team tackle lead with 33. Buchanan has a team-best five tackles for losses and Jackson has 4 1/2. Senior defensive end Randy Allen has a team-leading 3 1/2 sacks.Offensively, sophomore quarterback Dallas Davis passed for 1,130 yards, five touchdowns and five interceptions this season, while senior tight end Gerald Everett has 21 receptions for 290 yards and two touchdowns.Davis most memorable performance was rallying the Jaguars from a 17-point deficit to record a 21-20 victory over Mississippi State in the season opener. He tossed a game-winning 4-yard touchdown pass to Everett on fourth down with 57 seconds remaining for the decisive points.San Diego States defense is led by linebacker Calvin Munson (team-best 34 tackles) and cornerback Damontae Kazee (12 career interceptions). Senior defensive end Alex Barrett has contributed four sacks.Sophomore quarterback Christian Chapman threw for six touchdowns against two interceptions this season. ' ' '