University of Idaho Athletics

Williams is having a tremendous impact on the Idaho secondary with teh Vandals nabbing the greatest number of interceptions in 2016 (17) in recent history with cornerback Jayshawn Jordan leading the team with six, which includes one in Idaho's Famous Idaho Potato Bowl victory over Colorado State. 

The 2016 success was the result of a steady progression of improvement since Williams joined the staff. The secondary had 10 of the Vandals' 17 interceptions and 31 of the team's total 41 pass breakups. 

Williams, a former All-Pac-10 selection for Oregon State, joined the Vandals prior to the 2015 season as the cornerbacks coach. 

"Aric was a great player at Oregon State," Idaho head coach Paul Petrino said when he brough Williams onto his staff. "He will be a great recruiter for us in southern California. He is on of the top young coaches in college football."

Williams came to Idaho from the University of Montana, where he spent five years as teh Grizzlies' cornerbacks coach. His players consistently were among the Big Sky's best and in 2010 and 2011 Trumain Johnson was a multiple All-American selection as well as a first team All-Conference choice and a third-round NFL pick. 

Williams' coaching success mirrors the successes he had as a player. 

Williams was a standout cornerback at Oregon State and a four-year letterman from 2001-04. He was a first team All-Pac-10 selection for the Beavers as a senior(2004), when he had 56 tackles, five interceptions and 14 pass break-ups. He was a second team All-Conference pick his junior season at both cornerback and as a kick-off returner. His junior year he had 39 tackles, four interceptions and 12 pass deflections. 

Following his playing days at OSU, he played for the Philadelphia Eagles for a season (2005), and then played in NFL Europe for the Cologne Centurions (2006). After that he played two season in the AFL for the Philadelphia Soul (2007) and Arizona Rattlers (2008). 

He then turned is attention to coaching. He spent two seasons as an assistant at his high school alma mater, Diamond Bar. From there, he headed to Arizona State where he oversaw defensive quality control and assisted with cornerbacks and special teams. 

Williams earned his B.A. degree at OSU in fine arts with an emphasis in graphic design.