Tag Archives: houston roughnecks

NFL, XFL

Williams, Andre

Cards: Topps Valor 2014, Topps 2014 Chrome, Leaf Draft 2013, Topps Valor 2014 Strength, Topps Fire 2014, Topps Flashback 85 Chrome 2014
Acquired: IP 2020, Houston Roughnecks/ Tampa Bay Vipers Scrimmage, Houston Roughnecks Season Ticket Holders Party

Andre Williams quietly put himself together quite a ledger while playing his college ball for Boston College from 2010-2013. During his Senior year he ran 355 times for 2,177 yards and 18 TDs, earning the Doak Walker award for his efforts in 2013. He was also a unanimous All-American. Williams parlayed his efforts into a 4th round selection by the New York Giants.

Andre had a solid rookie year with 721 yards and 7 rushing TDs, including a 131 yard effort against the Titans. Surprisingly after a poor performance in 2015, Andre was released by the team. He’d earn his way onto the starting roster with the Chargers in 2016, running for 87 yards in the season finale. He’d see sparse playing time for the team in 2017 on and off the practice squad and then as an injury casualty to end the season.

Williams was selected in the 9th round of the XFL player draft by the Houston Roughnecks in 2020. The Roughnecks under head coach June Jones exclusively ran the Run N Shoot offense, so there was just one back in the backfield. Andre split time in the backfield with James Butler. In 5 contests, Andre rushed 23 times for 92 yards. It’s a shame that the XFL ended when it did, as Williams had his best game in the finale against Seattle, rushing 10 times for 54 yards in the Roughnecks 32-23 win.

With a lot of Run N Shoot style backs available to the Roughnecks in the XFL Draft, I was surprised the Roughnecks selected Williams. Nonetheless I snuck him onto my XFL fantasy squad, figuring that he’d eventually he’d see the lion’s share of carries.

Andre had a stack of great cards that were produced in a very short period of time. He’s got a pretty solid graph too, with some nice loops and a strong hook on the S at the end. I really liked his Topps Valor cards. They really pulled out all the punches at the end on that set, and artistically it has a lot of merit.

The first time I got Andre’s autograph, Lance and I caught him as he was leaving the field after the Vipers scrimmage. He was very nice, and graciously signed a stack of card for me. At the end of our conversation, he blessed me- which made me respond accordingly and thank him for his time.

I think I just had one more card of him left for the Roughnecks Season Ticket Holder event the weekend before the first game. He was interviewed by the FOX Sports team and as he left the stage signed this final card for me.

AAF, NFL, XFL

James II, Charles (2) ‘Socks’

Acquired: IP 2020, Houston Roughnecks Season Ticket Holders Kickoff Party
See Also: Charles James

Charles James has continued to stay busy as a defensive back playing football and keeping the dream alive since his last stop in Houston going back to 2016. He joined the Colts for a game in 2016 and then spent the 2017 off-season with the Bills and the Jaguars.

After a year out of football, Charles found a home in the Spring league of the Alliance of American Football (2019). Charles was the old vet in a very young secondary, for the Memphis Express, posting 18 tackles and 5 pass deflections. In the final contest against the Orlando Apollos, Charles had his best game with 6 tackles and 4 pass deflections- as the Express almost upset Orlando, but lost in the closing seconds.

Charles next joined the XFL for the 2020 season originally with the St. Louis Battlehawks. He’d be traded to the Houston Roughnecks before the season, and added to an already capable secondary. In 4 contests Socks had 7 combined tackles and a pass deflection, before the league was ended by COVID.

James as a defensive back by nature is skilled in the art of smack talk, and with the XFL being very upfront and personal with sideline interviews you know they were bound to catch some quality audio from James, and indeed they did.

During the league’s week 4 contest against the Dallas Renegades- Renegades QB Landry Jones had a particularly poor game, throwing 3 interceptions in the first half. As the camera rolled on the sidelines, Socks blurted out to the camera crew, “Get that quarterback the f*** outta here!”

I met James at the Roughneck’s Season Ticket Holder Party. He was very grateful to sign autographs and meet fans, and he very much enjoyed his short time in the AAF.

I lobbied hard to get Charles an official football card from Topps, but surprisingly he was neither included in the AAF or the XFL card sets. About a year after the AAF folded I went ahead and designed Charles his card out based on the above shot he signed. Looking back I wish I had thought of doing this sooner, as I am sure he would have appreciated this card.

CFL, NFL, XFL

McKnight, Dennis ‘Conan’

Card: ProSet 1989
Acquired: IP 2020, Houston Roughnecks/ Tampa Bay Vipers Joint Practice

After graduating from Drake University, Dennis McKnight signed with the Cleveland Browns in 1981, but didn’t make the squad. The following year, he signed with the Chargers. A gem in the rough, McKnight possessed versatility that allowed him to see action at every position on the offensive line (except at left tackle) over his time in San Diego. A gym rat, Dennis also was the team’s long snapper, and was a Pro Bowl alternate in 1988. He joined the Lions and played for them in 1990 and 1992, with a short stint in Philadephia in between during ’91. Over his football career he played in 141 contests, starting 100.

Dennis enjoys the sport so much that he went into coaching in 1999. As a positional coach he’s seen stops in college at Hawaii, Grossmont CC, San Diego State, SMU, and Lamar University. McKnight has also coached in the CFL for the Esks, and Ti-Cats. In 2020 he joined June Jones’ coaching staff for the Houston Roughnecks as Offensive Assistant/ Special Teams coach.

I completely missed Dennis on my inventory of Roughnecks players and coaches. Thankfully Lance was going with me to the joint practice, and brought an extra card for me. Dennis still posesses a strong and powerful build. When he speaks, its excited and loud, like a professional wrestler.

We watched him work with the kids after practice. I was very impressed by how he was handling them, and at one point exclaimed, “The whole point of this is to have fun!” As he was exiting, we stopped him and asked him for his autograph, where we talked about the current state of things. He thanked us for coming and how much it meant to the players. We also talked briefly about how the NFL is out of touch with fans and that they are missing out on the game of football.