ANDRE WILLIAMS MORNING CALL PLAYER

Andre Williams made the verbal commitment to accept a scholarship to Boston College during the summer, but yet he still played the 2009 high school football season as if he was still trying to impress Division I recruiters.

His college commitment didn't lessen his commitment to his high school squad.

Rather than slack off and preserve himself for the next level, Williams held nothing back from his Parkland High team.

Even with every opposing defense keying on him, he rushed for 1,913 yards and 33 touchdowns, averaging 8.5 yards a carry.

Combining blinding speed with bulldozer strength, the 6-foot-1, 214-pound Williams was a one-man wrecking crew.

He accounted for 51 percent of Parkland's total yardage by himself and 65 percent of its TDs as the Trojans put together a 10-3 season that carried them to the District 11 4A championship game.

''I wanted to prove myself as a Division I recruit,'' Williams said. ''This season showed that I'm going to be a force at BC.''

In a season loaded with offensive talent, especially at the quarterback position where Wilson's Tyler Smith and Central's Brendan Nosovitch put up eye-popping numbers, no one had to carry more of a load than Williams and no one delivered more than Williams, The Morning Call's Player of the Year for 2009.

While two of Parkland's defeats came against LVC co-champ Easton, Williams put on one of the most memorable performances against Central Catholic, the LVC's other co-champ.

Against an undefeated CCHS team, Williams rushed for 384 yards on 20 carries and scored five touchdowns.

It was the second best performance in Parkland history, behind only Austin Scott's 402 yards rushing and six scores against Freedom in 2002.

''That was a special night because Central was undefeated and we felt like we had something to prove,'' Williams said.

Another special night came in the postseason against another league champion, Mountain Valley Conference king East Stroudsburg South.

One week after he rushed for 149 yards and scored four touchdowns on just nine carries against Wallenpaupack, Williams gained 258 yards on 29 carries and scored five times against the Cavaliers.

It didn't matter to Williams whether he got the ball a lot or not; he was going to give it everything he had on every down.

''He was totally unselfish,'' said Parkland coach Jim Morgans. ''He enjoyed blocking as much as carrying the ball. He didn't mind being a decoy.''

''There are some kids in the conference who feel that it's really about them, but the way I feel about it is if your team isn't winning nobody's going to remember you anyway,'' Williams said. ''Team accomplishments come first over personal stuff.''

In a one-dimensional offense that featured little passing -- Parkland completed just 32 passes for 462 yards (35.5 yards per game) -- Williams was up to the challenge.

''I knew they were going to be keying on me and stacking the box,'' Williams said. ''But it has been instilled in me by mentor (former Dieruff and Temple athlete and Parkland parent) Mark McCants that big players make big plays. The pressure is not an obstacle. It's a positive to know it's up to me to make it.''