Crimson Red Sports

When Alabama returned to football practice last week, Williams still had a sore knee left over from the SEC championship game win over Georgia, which meant Alabama coaches weren't about to let him rejoin the team for contact drills. Injured players don't get to go home. Instead, they dress out in practice gear, wearing a black non-contact jersey, and spend practice doing whatever exercises they can. In most cases, that's riding the bike.

It took two days for Williams to convince Alabama trainers he could get back on the field and not spend practice time riding that bike to nowhere.

"The knee's good. Still connected to my body, so it's always good," he said.

It has turned into another story in the legend of Williams, the 6-foot-4 noseguard from Australia, who has tons of tattoos, a shaved head with no hair left except a rat tail in the back, and a degree of toughness some of his teammates envy.

His fellow defensive lineman still appreciate his effort in the SEC championship game three weeks ago, in which a Georgia lineman landed on his leg, bending his knee in a direction it wasn't meant to go.

"The knee's good. Still connected to my body, so it's always good," he said.