Nebraska running back Kenneth Williams enters Transfer Portal
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Nebraska Cornhuskers running back Kenneth Williams has entered the Transfer Portal, On3 has learned. He has two seasons of eligibility remaining.
Williams played his senior season of high school football at Lincoln High School, though he spent time in the state of Michigan prior to that. At the time, he was considered a track star, running a 10.52-second 100-meter dash at the time. He’d then move to Nebraska as a walk-on ahead of the 2023 season.
In 2023, Williams didn’t see any action at Nebraska. Instead, he took a redshirt. Then, in 2024, he saw his first action, playing in two games, both as a running back and as a kick returner.
Williams played 12 games for Nebraska in 2025, breaking out for the Cornhuskers as a playmaker. There, he became the team’s primary kickoff returner. Along the way, he earned honors as a Second-Team All-Big Ten selection for his kick returning. His total of 395 kickoff return yards ended up being the most for a Cornhusker since 2017.
Williams would average 32.9 yards per return in 2025. That included one return that he was able to bring back for a touchdown. On the ground, he has six career carries for 27 yards, or 4.5 yards per attempt. On top of that, he also has a reception for 20 yards.
It was the win over Northwestern when Williams returned the opening second half kickoff for a 95-yard touchdown. At the time, it was a 7-6 game, which the Cornhuskers would win by one touchdown. That was the program’s first kickoff return for a touchdown since the 2017 season. That would earn him Big Ten co-Special Teams Player of the Week honors.
“It was a lot of self-doubt. It was a lot of ups and downs in this journey,” Williams said during the 2025 season. “But, like I said, if you keep putting your best foot forward and keep striving, it’ll eventually come.”
In October of this past season, following a strong performance against Maryland, head coach Matt Rhule gave Kenneth Williams a scholarship. That was a decision he spoke about following the game.
“You got Kenneth Williams, who doesn’t even have a scholarship, and he’s out there running that kickoff return back,” Matt Rhule said. “He does now, by the way. That wrong was righted after the game.”
The 2025 season was the third for Matt Rhule with the Nebraska Cornhuskers. It would also be the second in a row where he led the Cornhuskers to a 7-6 record. He’s now moved to 19-19 overall during his time with Nebraska.
Nebraska currently has the 11th-ranked recruiting class in the 2026 cycle, according to the On3 College Football Team Transfer Portal Rankings. That includes 18 players who have already exited the program and seven who have entered so far for the Cornhuskers.
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