Ben Williams, first African-American football player to participate in a game for Ole Miss, dies at 65

OXFORD, Miss. — Ben Williams, the first African-American to play in a football game for Ole Miss, died on Monday in Jackson, Mississippi. He was 65.

Williams enrolled at Ole Miss in 1971 alongside James Reed, making them the first two black football players in school history. Williams still holds the Ole Miss school records for career sacks with 37 and single-season sacks with 18. 

In 2014, Ole Miss honored Williams and Reed by naming the entrance to its practice facility and athletics center the Williams-Reed Football Foyer. At the time, Williams described the honor as one of the greatest honors of his life.

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By Nick Suss, Mississippi Clarion Ledger, USA Today
Featured Image, Courtesy of Ole Miss Athletics Archives
Full article @ USA Today