As he was weighing his transfer options following his final campaign at Syracuse in early 2001, Madei Williams decided to take a chance on a first-year coach at Southern Illinois.
"It was my one and only visit,'' recalled Williams, who liked what he saw in the man hired to the head coaching post at the Division I-AA school.
He started for the 2001 Southern Illinois team, then watched as Jerry Kill led the program to four straight winning seasons.
Williams, who today is known as a quarterback whisper for his work with high school-level QBs, including Rutgers-bound senior Johnathan Lewis of St.