This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

If anybody knows what BYU running back Jamaal Williams went through last summer, it is the former Cougar whose school career rushing record Williams is about to break, Harvey Unga.

Unga, who rushed for 3,455 yards from 2006-09, didn't get to add to his rushing total in 2009 because he was forced to leave BYU due to an honor code violation. Back then, the school acknowledged when athletes ran afoul of the code. Not anymore.

While working on this online story that will be published in Thursday's The Salt Lake Tribune, I caught up with Unga, who is now a graduate assistant at BYU.

First, Unga said he can't think of a player he would like to break his record other than Williams, who has 3,392 entering Friday's home game against Mississippi State.

"I love the kid," Unga said.

Williams' mother, Nicolle, who I also talked to at length for the article, sought out Unga back when Williams was a freshman in 2012 and asked the former Chicago Bear to mentor her son.

"So I tried to help out a little bit with those kind of situations. Going through it myself, there is a fine line of pushing a kid and trying to press what he needs to do on him," Unga said. "Then there's the other part where you just love the kid. For me, it was just trying to love the kid up and help him out through that time. I knew that he would take care of the rest."

Unga has counseled Williams on and off the field since the summer after Williams' freshman season, which is about the time that Unga knew his record was in jeopardy.

"Oh, I knew it was coming," Unga said. "JD [Falslev] asked me this yesterday. He was like, what do you think? I say that I have always known that records are made to be broken. I said that long before Jamaal got here. I am grateful for the O line that I had, the success that I had here."

Unga said he has played the "what-if? game" over the years, wondering how many yards he could have picked up in 2010 — Jake Heaps' freshman season, and how much he could have helped the highly touted freshman in his transition.

"It has been a while coming now. It is a bittersweet thing. Obviously it is nice to be able to have accolades and this or that," Unga said. "But there is always a point in time when someone comes along and they break those things. So, that's life. I couldn't be happier for Jamaal."

In the article, I quoted Ty Detmer as saying Williams is one of the best football players in school history. I asked running backs coach Reno Mahe for his opinion, too.

"That's a good question," Mahe said. "I never thought about it that way. I don't know where I would rank him. Right now he's my starting tailback, so I would say first."

Mahe also got away from BYU for a year, playing for Dixie State College for a season before returning in 2001.

"It is really difficult [to come back to BYU]," Mahe said. "I know that from experience. But again, I go back to he's a football junkie. He grew up a track guy. You talk to his mom, and she talks about all the different track meets he did. It is probably not as difficult for someone like him. But he's just an athlete."

Fellow running back Squally Canada has emerged as Williams' best friend on the team. Tuesday, Canada said Williams doesn't really dwell on the record a lot.

"We don't even talk about the record, honestly," Canada said. "With Jamaal, we don't even talk about football. When I am with Jamaal, we play Madden [video game]. I beat him. ….. We play video games. When I am with Jamaal, we don't even talk about football. That is the last thing on our minds. But if we do talk about it, it is [injuries]. He doesn't talk about the records too much."

Canada said he patterns his running style after Williams and former Seattle Seahawks star Marshawn Lynch.

Williams is No. 2 in the nation in rushing yards (866) and touchdowns (10), trailing SDSU's Donnell Pumphrey (891) in yards and Louisville QB Lamar Jackson in rushing touchdowns (14). Pumphrey has played in one fewer game.

Williams is starting to get a little bit of run as a longshot Heisman Trophy candidate.

"It has been a pretty exciting season, one he can look back at and tell his kids about, one he should be very proud of," said Nicolle Williams. "I think it is one that is exceptional and unique — something that other players would want to say they experienced at their college. I feel like he made a good choice; It has been a great college experience. It has made him mature. It has shown him different values from family — just being a strong individual. He will have a great degree (in sociology). The alumni support will be phenomenal his whole life. It is a decision that I am glad he got to experience and to live out."

And don't tell mom that he can't win college football's most prestigious individual honor.

"I think he deserves the recognition," she said. "I look at what he's doing and I look at what else is going on. He is out there busting his butt. I see the hard work he put in during the offseason. I think he deserves just as much attention as the other running backs; Jamaal is out on the field proving it with the numbers he is putting up week after week. Those are not easy numbers to do. I credit the team, the coaches, the players. Jamaal can't do those numbers by himself. It comes from team unity; Everybody has to work as one.

People have told me, well, he didn't play last year. I say, that should make it even better because he came back and he is making these rushes and touchdowns. But I am a mom. What do I know? I am just going to be a cheerleader for Jamaal."