Caleb Williams, the star quarterback at the University of Southern California who won the Heisman Trophy on Dec. 10, earlier made his mark at two Washington-area Catholic schools he attended for middle school and high school. Before graduating from Gonzaga College High School in Washington, D.C., in 2021, Williams attended St. Pius X Regional School in Bowie, Maryland.

“We love Caleb!” a group of purple-clad Gonzaga students chanted during a Heisman Trophy watch party at the Jesuit boys’ high school, with some of them jumping up and hugging each other after Williams had accepted his award. 

Williams had just become the first Washington-area native to win the Heisman Trophy. Four years earlier in November 2018, Williams as Gonzaga’s sophomore quarterback had lifted the Eagles to their first Washington Catholic Athletic Conference football title since 2002 with an improbable 46-43 win over DeMatha, which included a last-second 53-yard “Hail Mary” touchdown pass from Williams to leaping wide receiver John Marshall to seal the victory at The Catholic University of America.

After a year-long stay at the University of Oklahoma, where Williams led the Sooners to a come-from-behind win over archrival Texas, Williams threw for more than 4,000 yards with a 66% pass completion rate and 37 touchdowns with only four interceptions in leading the USC Trojans to a No. 8 ranking and 11-2 record. During this, his first year at USC, he has helped restore some of the glory to a Pac 12 program that had struggled to meet its formerly elite status after Coach Pete Carroll left in 2009 to lead the Seattle Seahawks. 

Williams had transferred from Norman, Oklahoma, home of the Sooners, to USC in Los Angeles, after former OU coach Lincoln Riley took the top job at USC in 2021. The Heisman Trophy victory likely took away some of the pain of the Trojans’ Dec. 2 47-24 loss to Utah, which cost USC a spot in the College Football Playoffs.

Debbie Corradini, a resource teacher at St. Pius X Regional School, remembers Williams for his qualities off the gridiron from when he attended St. Pius in the seventh and eighth grade.

“We taught him, but in a lot of ways, he taught us (more) about being hard-working, kind, and humble,” she said. “He was very well mannered and kind to his peers.” 

A 36-year veteran of the St. Pius X Regional School staff and the mother of four children, Corradini cried on Saturday night during the Heisman presentation, feeling proud of Williams.

She recalled Williams during his middle school years as “having the drive to be the very best at everything he did.” He enjoyed other activities, such as biking, fishing and swimming, but ironically found relaxation in the rough and tumble contact sport of football, she recalled. Corradini remembered him overcoming doubts about whether he was big enough to be an effective quarterback. 

During his middle school years, Williams decided to focus on football as a sport, and he and his father, Carl Williams, would venture out for 5:30 a.m. workouts at the Prince George’s Sports and Learning Complex in Landover, Maryland, not far from FedEx Field, the stadium of the Washington Commanders. 

“He has a great mom and dad,” Corradini said. “They did a great job keeping him humble.” 

Even in middle school, Williams had set his sights on winning a Heisman Trophy and eventually becoming a professional football player, something she sometimes hears from young students, Corradini recalled. During recess, she remembers Williams “throwing the football with his buddies,” including a couple who matriculated to Gonzaga and played football with him there.

Luke Casey, a fifth grade teacher at St. Pius and an assistant football coach at DeMatha, helped privately coach Williams in the quarterback position, which requires a great deal of athleticism, leadership, and mental dexterity.  

 In an interview with WTTG-5 after the Heisman Trophy award presentation, Randy Trivers, the football coach at Gonzaga, praised Williams’ athletic ability, saying, “He has exceptional arm talent…and exceptional foot speed… He has the right amount of poise and confidence.” Trivers paid tribute to Williams’ preparation for games as being part of what sets him apart from other quarterbacks. 

Jesuit Father Joseph Lingan, who became president of Gonzaga in 2021, paid tribute to “Caleb’s leadership both on and off the field, his charitable nature, and his gracious and humble character,” in a statement the school released after the Heisman Trophy announcement.

Students at St. Pius are inspired by Williams’ success, and many of them got to meet the quarterback when he visited St. Pius about a year ago, Corradini said. She admired the leadership Williams showed in speaking with many students and not boasting or bragging about his success.

 “I want to be the next Caleb Williams,” one student told her. 

Gonzaga president praises Heisman Trophy winner

 The following is a Dec. 10 statement from Jesuit Father Joseph Lingan, the president of Gonzaga College High School in Washington, after University of Southern California quarterback Caleb Williams, a 2021 graduate of Gonzaga, was named as the 2022 Heisman Trophy winner.

“The Gonzaga College High School Community offers our most sincere congratulations to Caleb and his parents on his reception of the Heisman Trophy. We are proud of the fine young man that he is and of what this accomplishment represents. Further, we continue to support and encourage him in his efforts on the football field and in his future pursuits in life. 

“Caleb and his parents embraced all that Gonzaga has to offer. He graduated as an integral community member who both contributed to and benefited from our extraordinary school. We remain proud of Caleb’s leadership both on and off the field, his charitable nature, and his gracious and humble character.

“We appreciate that Caleb and the Williams family chose Gonzaga. They did so knowing and valuing everything that a Gonzaga education offers – rigorous academics, a deep tradition of faith and service, a strong and instructional athletic and extracurricular program, and a tremendous spirit and sense of community rooted in Ignatian values.

“Once again, on behalf of the entire Gonzaga community, Congratulations Caleb! You will always be an Eagle! Continue to make us proud!”