William Green (American football)

Green was born in Atlantic City, New Jersey. His father was a heroin addict who died of AIDS when Green was 13 years old. His mother died of the disease a year later after being infected by his father. After his parents' deaths, Green was separated from his four siblings.[1]

Green attended Holy Spirit High School in Absecon, New Jersey, where he played for the Holy Spirit Spartans high school football team and received multiple high school All-American honors.[2]

Green received an athletic scholarship to attend Boston College, and played for the Boston College Eagles football team from 1998 to 2001. In two years as a starting running back, he compiled over 2,700 yards rushing and 32 touchdowns. He was a first-team All-Big East Conference selection in 2000 and 2001, was honored as the Big East Offensive Player of the Year, and was recognized as a consensus first-team All-American in 2001, after receiving first-team honors from the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), The Sporting News, the Walter Camp Football Foundation, Football News and Pro Football Weekly.[3]

In the 2002 NFL Draft, Green was a top-rated player. However, two college suspensions for marijuana use hurt his stock on draft day.[4]

Cleveland selected him as 16th overall pick in the first round of the 2002 NFL Draft.[5] As a rookie in 2002, Green appeared in all 16 regular season games and started ten of them, gaining 887 yards and scoring six touchdowns. In a home game with playoff implications versus Atlanta late in the season, Green provided Browns fans with one of the most memorable moments of the new Browns. He ran for a 64-yard touchdown to put the Browns ahead for good in a play known as "Run William Run!" due to radio play by play man Jim Donovan's call of the play.

His 2003 season, however, was fraught with turmoil. After a good start with 559 yards, Green was arrested for drunk driving and marijuana possession. Green was also notoriously seen wearing one shoe and one sock during the arrest.[6] The arrest led to a four-game suspension under the league's substance abuse policy. While under suspension, Green's fiancée, Asia Gray, stabbed him in the back during a domestic dispute.[4] The league extended his suspension through the end of the 2003 season "for treatment purposes."[7]

In 2004, Green gained 585 yards on the season. On November 14, he was ejected prior to a game with the Pittsburgh Steelers for fighting with linebacker Joey Porter.[8] Around this time, he had disclosed that he was having a child with a woman other than his wife.[9]

His final season in Cleveland was an injury-plagued 2005 campaign where he appeared in eight games and gained only 78 yards. The Browns placed him on injured reserve at the end of training camp in 2006 and reached an injury settlement with Green allowing them to release him.[10]

In March 2008, it was reported that Green would attempt to play in the NFL again after two seasons out of the league. He worked out at his alma mater Boston College's Pro Day on March 19,[9] showing up in "great shape," bench-pressing 225 pounds 25 times and posting a 42-inch vertical leap, and also ran a 4.85 forty yard dash. However, he did not sign a contract.

Prior to his 2008 NFL comeback attempt, Green became a Christian. He became a motivational speaker at corporate, church, and school events. His speeches are typically about forgiveness and overcoming struggles. In 2012, he became an ordained minister.[1]

He is the father of eight children, seven with his wife, Asia Gray, and one from a previous relationship. All eight children live with him and his wife on a four-acre property in Berlin, New Jersey.[1]

• Cleveland Browns bio
• Motivational Speaking website