Kevon Williams Embraces New Leadership Role With U.S. Men’s Sevens Team

Kevon Williams competes against Samoa during their fifth-place semifinal match at the HSBC Singapore Rugby Sevens on April 10, 2022 in Singapore.

Last September, shortly after making his Olympic debut with the U.S. men’s rugby sevens team, Kevon Williams was elevated to team captain.
The move, in some ways, brought his unlikely journey in the sport full circle.
A decade ago, the Houston native was enjoying a standout career as a wide receiver at New Mexico Highlands University, leading the Division II team in receiving for three seasons and dreaming of a professional career in that sport. It was only after the latter didn’t work out that he took up rugby, and when a scout saw him playing for his school’s club team in 2013, Williams got an opportunity with the Denver Barbarians, an elite amateur team that consistently challenges for national club titles.
Interest from the national team followed soon after, and over the past six or so years Williams has established himself as a dangerous halfback/wing on a U.S. team that’s shown signs of taking the next step into the sport’s elite.
“For whatever reason, things just didn’t work out for me and in that realm of things,” Williams said of his football career. “For me to get a second chance at playing at a high level at another sport, it was insane. To be able to say that I’m on the U.S. national team playing rugby. I’ve been to Sevens World Cup. I’ve been to an Olympics. I mean, it means a lot.”
He pauses. And the competitor comes out loud and clear.
“I mean, it would mean a lot more to me if we were able to kind of, you know, squeeze out those wins in some of those big moment games,” he said.
Calling what he’s experienced so far “surreal,” the 30-year-old Williams also sees a bright future. He’s shown flashes of just how bright in the 2021-22 World Rugby Sevens Series.
In November, in his first major tournament as captain, he helped lead the Eagles to a silver medal at the season opener in Dubai, marking the team’s best finish since 2019. Through six tournaments so far this season, he’s played in 31 matches and scored 132 points, which ranks ninth in the series. Meanwhile, a standout performance from Williams at the Singapore stop in early April helped the U.S. snap South Africa’s 36-game winning streak en route to a sixth-place finish.
The string of steady results ended one week later, when the Eagles finished 13th in Vancouver. Considering how depleted the U.S. roster was with injuries, though, Williams praised how younger players stepped up and handled bigger roles.
“A lot of guys kind of stepped up big,” said Williams, who himself missed the last day of the tournament with a hamstring injury. “Those moments were huge for the guys who don’t get too much time but got to come out and play and show what they had.”

Kevon Williams competes against Team Great Britain during their quarterfinal match at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 on July 27, 2021 in Chofu, Tokyo, Japan.

Even with the struggles in Vancouver, the Americans remain fourth in the series standings. Williams is optimistic that the U.S. has the skill and depth to continue fighting for podium spots in the months ahead.
“The goal doesn’t change regardless of the status of the team, no matter how young we are, how old we are,” Williams said. “The goal is still to win. We think we can do it with the guys we got.”
Opportunities for that come next month, with a May 20-22 World Series tournament in Toulouse, France, followed by one in London the following weekend.
“Obviously we want to win those tournaments,” Williams said.
Bigger picture, though, these events are leading up to bigger goals down the line: a top three finish at the 2022 World Cup in South Africa and a medal at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Williams is eager to continue leading the squad toward those tournaments.
After two years of massive disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, including having to play at last summer’s Olympics without fans in the stands, things are starting to return closer to normal this season. The Americans played their first tournament in front of fans at the World Series stop in Singapore. 
“It actually means a lot and it kind of helps you kind of get in a rhythm,” Williams said. “The crowd does play a huge effect on how the game goes.”
Since being named captain, Williams said he’s grown as a leader, especially given the unusual circumstances.
Now he’s looking for more.
The team’s sixth-place finish at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 represented a major step forward from the 2016 Games in Rio, where the Americans came in ninth place.
Still, disappointment lingers over what could have been. 
In a quarterfinal match against Great Britain, the Americans led 21-0 late in the first half. Fortunes turned quickly, however, with the Brits going on a run of four straight tries, ending the Eagles’ medal hopes with a 26-21 loss. 
“You hear your coaches say how valuable certain moments are in games and you really don’t understand how big those moments are until the game is over,” Williams said. “And I just think we have learned that we need to value moments and big moments in games a lot, a lot better. 
“You can make a thousand mistakes in the game. But as long as you don’t make the mistake at the wrong time, you’ll be fine. And that’s what kind of hurt us at the Olympics. … Moving forward, we just kind of put emphasis on the moments, big moments.”
They’ll have plenty of them in the coming months.