PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Tyreek Maddox-Williams entered training camp in 2017 as a promising sophomore, excited to solidify the name he'd made for himself on defense. But on a quick step during a drill on day two, the linebacker's leg buckled and he went down in pain. Moments later though, he was back up and walking, even jogging. It hurt, and he limped, but he was alright.
 
Until he wasn't.
 
His knee ballooned the next day, and Maddox-Williams and trainers both knew it was his ACL.
 
The first person Maddox-Williams, now a redshirt junior, called was his uncle, Hershell, the first person he calls about everything. His uncle raised him, introduced him to the game, and is the most important person in his life.
 
"He told me he wanted to cry but he couldn't because he didn't want me to break down. So he tried to keep me in good spirits. He got me through it and I got my tears out and the next thing I knew I was doing better," Maddox-Williams said.
 
It was one of the worst feelings, Maddox-Williams said. Freshman year in 2016 he'd been called up to play when then-senior Greg Jones was injured. Maddox-Williams had an impressive season, and was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team by ESPN.com.
 
But sophomore year was supposed to be his chance to prove he deserved his spot in the starting lineup at Sam linebacker. "I wanted to prove that I'm not here just because another guy got injured, I'm here because I was the best guy at the position," he said.
 
No longer being at practice and lifts with his team, Maddox-Williams felt isolated. "The guys try to lift you up, but they have to keep moving and get the team ready for the season," he said.
 
But once he began to see progress, he gained momentum in healing not only physically, but also mentally.
 
After reconstructive surgery, in the time between pain starting to recede, and beginning to walk again, Maddox-Williams' mindset transitioned from "I'm injured," to "I'm recovering, I'm getting better."
 
Maddox-Williams spent game days on the sideline that 2017 season. At that point, he couldn't think about himself, he said. "I had to encourage everybody else and help the guys at my position, so it couldn't be about me at that point."
 
That's the sign of a true leader, even on crutches.
 
Fast-forward to now. Maddox-Williams was named a captain this year and is the most experienced of the linebackers.
 
When he sees something wrong in practice, he says it out loud, on site, and it gets fixed. There's a respect factor that's naturally there, and when Maddox-Williams says something, his teammates listen.
 
He knows he can't be perfect, but he also knows the impression he can have on younger players, so he tries to be.
 
"If they see that I'm doing everything right, being a playmaker, being everywhere, they really will respect that and they'll want to follow. Everyone on our defense is going to be on point."
 
When he's not perfect, Maddox-Williams recognizes it. "I'm not going to act like I'm the best person in the world, I acknowledge my failures," he said. "You can mess up and as long as you fix it the next time, you're good."

As a team, the Scarlet Knights talk about trying to be the most improved team in the country. That's something Maddox-Williams can't put a number on. They have to start with the first game, try to go 1-0 and continue to do that, he said.
 
Maddox-Williams will surely play a role in that success this season, and seems to have more wisdom than the average college player his age.
 
"When you first get injured you just don't see the future of it. You're only thinking about right then, you don't see how it'll ever get better," he said. "The moment you come back from it and say 'alright that's done and we're moved on,' then you start doing things, making progress and leading the team.
 
"At that point when you didn't give up, you see that you can improve from there and now you can become something. So I'm glad I didn't give up. I'm never going to give up on anything."