Luke Deal discusses the impact Cadillac Williams has on Auburn culture

Cadillac Williams made an impact on Auburn football in 2022 according to tight end Luke Deal.

Williams stepped into the interim head coach role after Auburn fired Bryan Harsin midseason. He went 2-2 as the interim coach and clearly Auburn played with a little juice.

During SEC Media Days, Deal revealed what Williams did for the program and how he earned a spot back in 2023 under Hugh Freeze.

“You guys saw,” Deal said. “He was used to having the spotlight on him as a player, and whenever you saw he had the spotlight on him as a coach, you saw that positive energy. You saw that just positive light, that positive outlook on everything in life. That was something that energized us. It motivated us. That’s something that he brings every single day.”

Williams remained on staff as the running back’s coach and added the title of associate head coach under Freeze. A former Auburn running back himself, Williams carved out a nice NFL career as well so it might be wise to listen to his guidance.

Deal doesn’t deal with Williams directly based on position, but since Williams is essentially the second in command to Freeze, he reaches all.

“We’ve got a really good running back room, really, really good running back room,” Deal said. “Not only a good group of players, but a good group of guys. That trickles down from his leadership for sure and how he looks at every day as an opportunity.”

During Auburn’s head coaching search, Williams seemed to be a viable candidate based on what he did over a four-week period. He had no previous head coaching experience and only coached at the Power Five level with Auburn since 2019 as the running back’s coach.

But it was integral to bring him back, according to Deal.

“Oh, yeah. People are going to be pretty upset if you get rid of Cadillac Williams,” Deal said. “I know I would be. Coach Lac, he’s an incredible man, incredible ambassador for the school, has been for a long time. People with orange and blue in their blood, they want to see him around forever. That was definitely important for our success.”

Whether Williams remains on staff at Auburn long term remains to be seen. Depending upon the performance of the team this year, a cushy offensive coordinator or head coaching job could open for Williams.

Whether Williams would leave his alma mater for another assistant job could be questionable, but there’s no doubt he could generate head coaching buzz again should Auburn stay on an upward trajectory.