Roy Williams continues working on the recruiting trail even in retirement

When Hall of Fame head coach Roy Williams retired this past spring, one bit of information that was shared with all of us was that he would still have an office on campus. It was one of those soften-the-harsh-blow pieces of information that could’ve easily meant nothing just as well as it could mean something. Fast forward to this month, and we now know at least one thing that his office is being used for.

Chapel Fowler from The Fayetteville Observer wrote an article yesterday about what Roy Williams has been up to during his retirement. It should surprise nobody that the primary thing that he has been up to is playing lots and lots of golf. In fact, he was interviewed for the article at the Wyndham Championship Pro-Am at the Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro.

Aside from golf, he has been performing normal grandfather duties, but there’s one other task that he has taken on for his “other” family. Fowler reported that Roy Williams has been working as a “quasi-ambassador” for both new head coach Hubert Davis, and Carolina football head coach Mack Brown. He has been meeting with both coaches’ recruits upon request, and he also has still been working with Bubba Cunningham and the fundraising staff at the Ram’s club.

Finding out that Williams is still this engaged with the program is important for a number of reasons. The biggest reason this is important is because some of the players that Davis has been recruiting for the 2022 class were also being recruited by Williams before he stepped down as the head coach. There isn’t anything that will rock the boat more on the recruiting trail than when the coach recruiting a player steps away from the program, so him still being around, and almost certainly talking up Hubert Davis, is a big deal. That is certainly reflected in Davis’ success on the recruiting trail so far — UNC currently has the third-best recruiting class in the country, with the highlight of the class so far being five-star center and top 20 commit Jalen Washington.

Another reason that Williams staying engaged with the program on this level is important is because it shows recruits just how deep the Carolina family tradition really goes. It would’ve been incredibly easy as a 71-year-old retiree to completely let go of the wheel and only make the occasional appearance at basketball games, but Williams truly loves not only the basketball program, but the entire university. His love is especially strong for both Hubert Davis and Mack Brown, so isn’t shocking that he is willing to do anything that either of them ask him to do.

How long will the Hall of Fame coach continue to do this? Who knows, but right now he still remains one of Bubba Cunningham’s greatest assets, and that is fantastic for Carolina athletics.