Recruiting: Centennial 2025 EDGE Brooks Williams could see recruiting take off this spring

PORT ST. LUCIE — St. Lucie West Centennial rising senior edge rusher Brooks Williams is something of an anomaly.

It’s not just his impressive stature: 6-foot-6, 215 pounds.

It’s more the fact that his stature and ability on the football field hasn’t translated to more offers.

Yet.

“Brooks Williams, very naturally talented. He rolls out of bed better than a lot of St. Lucie County,” Centennial coach Jacob Turay said. “People just haven’t seen Brooks yet. Now they have since he committed to USF. Recruiting-wise, he might have been a late bloomer. I’m excited to see where it’s going to go because everything is trending in the right direction for that young man. Brooks just needs to stay consistent because his only obstacle is himself.”

Williams, who committed to USF in April and is ranked No. 79 on the USA Today Florida Network top 100, has drawn comparisons to another late bloomer from St. Lucie County — current South Carolina edge rusher Gilber Edmond.

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Edmond was a lanky tight end at Fort Pierce Westwood who converted to edge rusher the spring before his senior year and parlayed a monster season into an SEC opportunity. Turay was a defensive assistant on that Westwood team.

The difference with Williams is he’s coming off a solid season as a defender. He had 49 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and two fumble recoveries as an edge rusher/defensive lineman in 2023.

Williams has been told he’s gone under the radar so far, but also says he isn’t concerned about rankings, stars or the number of offers he has.

“I’m looking to get after it regardless,” he said. “Rankings don’t mean anything. It’s about what I can do for the team.”

Of course, getting more offers doesn’t matter when you’re confident with your college decision.

Williams also was considering Troy, Georgia Tech and FAU, but USF won him over during the spring.

“Honestly, when I went to the spring game, I already had people over there. I have (former Treasure Coast defensive lineman) Jahari (Grant) there. I really liked USF. The vibe was great. I talked to the coaches, all the coaches really loved me, and they seemed really genuine. That’s what I was looking for.

“I took some visits. USF was for me. It was the school I wanted to be at.”

Regardless of how many coaches come to Centennial during the next month, Williams is focused on the work.

While he played along the defensive front for Centennial last season, he expects to play more of a standup outside linebacker role at USF.

“I’ve been working on my pass rush and I’m fitting to play a little outside backer, so dropping into coverage,” Williams said.  Even though I’m not big on weight, I love stopping the run. And I love getting to the quarterback.”

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Recruiting: Centennial 2025 EDGE Brooks Williams could see recruiting take off this spring