From walk-on to game-changer, William Wright's journey culminates back home, fulfilling a dream on the Music City Bowl stage.
Since his arrival on campus as a walk-on for Tennessee football in 2020, cornerback William Wright has been ready when called upon during all four of his seasons of action.
While there may not be as many numbers to go off of to showcase Wright’s ability and impact, especially this season, Wright remains the true embodiment of a Volunteer.
When he arrived, the expectation was not that high for Wright, who walked on for all five seasons with the Vols.
Yet as things slowly developed for Wright’s career, he would soon find himself on the field for some of the bigger moments in recent Tennessee football history. For example, he recorded two solo tackles in the 2022 win against Alabama.
“That’s the reason I came to Tennessee as a walk-on and kind of earned my play,” Wright said Saturday as he and his teammates got ready for Tuesday's Music City Bowl. “So definitely a dream come true, but, you know, choosing to come here, I have to bet on myself, so it's all part of it.”
Wright played in just two games his redshirt freshman season in 2021, which also happened to be the first year with head coach Josh Heupel.
“All the years and all the work put in kind of just led up to this opportunity,” Wright said. ”But for the whole team, it's kind of just next man up mentality, so we got a lot of guys rolling, and it's gonna be a great opportunity for a lot of guys.”
Heupel’s first season with the Vols in 2021 ended with a road trip to Nashville for the Music City Bowl. Now, years later, Wright ends his collegiate career in the same bowl game.
“The team’s completely different, in a good way,” Wright said. “So it’s coming full circle, but this time we’re gonna end up playing the right way and doing the right things.”
Vols fans remember the tough 2021 Music City Bowl loss to Purdue, which ended on a questionable call at the goal line before the Boilermakers claimed victory 48-45 over the Vols.
An important tidbit of Wright’s career, he spent his high school career just a few miles from where the Music City Bowl takes place, Nissan Stadium. Just over 16 miles from his school, Ensworth High School, Wright is seeing the moment as a full-circle story.
“I went to Esworth,” Wright said. “We got a lot of guys from Ensworth, so it's kind of cool coming here and preparing here and just being back home.”
Wright, in his final season, made his presence felt, playing in 10 games as he remained a reliable special teams player, before being called upon to help the secondary later in the season after injuries depleted the cornerback room.
The cornerback wrapped up his career with 22 total tackles, along with a pick-six, which occurred this year, his senior season against New Mexico State, where Wright returned an interception for a 35-yard score.
From high school in Nashville to closing his college days just a few miles down the road from his hometown, Wright gets the chance to play at home for the Vols one more time.
“It’s truly a blessing to be able to play there,” Wright said. “Because of course the family can come, close to home, and like I said, an amazing opportunity to play at Nissan.”