Prentice Cyril Williams was born on Jan 29, 1946, to Thomas Williams and Bessie L. Wilson. Prentice, whose childhood nickname was "Buddy", was the second oldest of six siblings. He is survived by two of his brothers, Thom and Jim, and his sisters, Otha and Onnia, and was preceded in death by his parents and his older brother Nathaniel. Prentice came from a poor family. They didn't have the opportunities that would help propel them to better positions in life, but Prentice found his passion in football, and it helped give him a way of life that made a different person of him. His siblings were so proud and hopeful for him. Prentice graduated from Taft High School, Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1966, and then left home on a football scholarship at Arizona State University. After ASU Prentice chose to live most of his adult life near the ASU campus as an active member of the Tempe Arizona community.
Prentice had many jobs over the years ranging from a mortgage loan consultant, senior mortgage loan officer, printing sales manager, and sign sales manager, to internet radio talk show host. He was also very politically active. He was an unabashed liberal and fought for liberal causes in Tempe, the state of Arizona, and the nation. Prentice ran (unsuccessfully) for Tempe City Council in every 2-year election cycle between 1978 and (at least) 1994, and his 1978 run was highlighted in the book, The African American Experience in Tempe by Jared Smith (2010).
Prentice was a colorful football player at ASU, playing under renowned head coach Frank Kush. Starting out as a running back, he once rushed for over 100 yards but spent the majority of his career as a speedy linebacker on defense. He was a proud member of the undefeated 1970 Sun Devil team that was ranked by the Polling System as the number one college team in the nation. Prentice was drafted by the Denver Broncos in 1971 and played on the Dallas Cowboys practice squad. He also played for the Phoenix Blazers in the short-lived Western Football League, in 1972 and 1973 before ending his football career.
Following his football career, Prentice began a lifelong love of basketball beginning in the mid-1970s, playing pickup games with students and others at the ASU gym (PE West) on campus. In the 1980s Prentice started playing with faculty and staff noontime pickup games. When the Faculty Staff Basketball Association (FSBA) became an official campus organization in the early 1990s. Prentice, and other community members who had been playing in the PE West gym, were grandfathered into the organization. Prentice was the only community member who continued over time and became a regular as if he were one of the faculty/staff. He played basketball with students, faculty, and staff for over 50 years, making him the all-time longest continuously running participant in ASU's noontime basketball scene. One of his favorite sayings after forcing a turnover was "Defense by Prentice!"
On April 26, 2024, Prentice collapsed on the court during a noontime FSBA basketball game. He was rushed to Banner Desert Hospital in Mesa where it was determined that he had had both a stroke and a heart attack. Over the next three weeks, he would suffer additional strokes and his heart finally gave out. Prentice never left the hospital and died on May 21st. Numerous basketball buddies visited him in the hospital on a daily basis right up until the end. Prentice Williams lived larger than life, played basketball right up to his 78th year, which allowed him to die doing something he loved. We, his basketball buddies, can't believe he is gone.
Brother Thom indicated that "not everything worked out for Prentice, but he still loved his Arizona life, and we loved him for that. I loved my brother to no end, and he always knew that. That's one reason that he would always stay with me when he came home to Cincinnati. It was reciprocal. I never considered that I would come to be the oldest of the family, but here we are." Prentice, Buddy, you will be missed.
Prentice had many jobs over the years ranging from a mortgage loan consultant, senior mortgage loan officer, printing sales manager, and sign sales manager, to internet radio talk show host. He was also very politically active. He was an unabashed liberal and fought for liberal causes in Tempe, the state of Arizona, and the nation. Prentice ran (unsuccessfully) for Tempe City Council in every 2-year election cycle between 1978 and (at least) 1994, and his 1978 run was highlighted in the book, The African American Experience in Tempe by Jared Smith (2010).
Prentice was a colorful football player at ASU, playing under renowned head coach Frank Kush. Starting out as a running back, he once rushed for over 100 yards but spent the majority of his career as a speedy linebacker on defense. He was a proud member of the undefeated 1970 Sun Devil team that was ranked by the Polling System as the number one college team in the nation. Prentice was drafted by the Denver Broncos in 1971 and played on the Dallas Cowboys practice squad. He also played for the Phoenix Blazers in the short-lived Western Football League, in 1972 and 1973 before ending his football career.
Following his football career, Prentice began a lifelong love of basketball beginning in the mid-1970s, playing pickup games with students and others at the ASU gym (PE West) on campus. In the 1980s Prentice started playing with faculty and staff noontime pickup games. When the Faculty Staff Basketball Association (FSBA) became an official campus organization in the early 1990s. Prentice, and other community members who had been playing in the PE West gym, were grandfathered into the organization. Prentice was the only community member who continued over time and became a regular as if he were one of the faculty/staff. He played basketball with students, faculty, and staff for over 50 years, making him the all-time longest continuously running participant in ASU's noontime basketball scene. One of his favorite sayings after forcing a turnover was "Defense by Prentice!"
On April 26, 2024, Prentice collapsed on the court during a noontime FSBA basketball game. He was rushed to Banner Desert Hospital in Mesa where it was determined that he had had both a stroke and a heart attack. Over the next three weeks, he would suffer additional strokes and his heart finally gave out. Prentice never left the hospital and died on May 21st. Numerous basketball buddies visited him in the hospital on a daily basis right up until the end. Prentice Williams lived larger than life, played basketball right up to his 78th year, which allowed him to die doing something he loved. We, his basketball buddies, can't believe he is gone.
Brother Thom indicated that "not everything worked out for Prentice, but he still loved his Arizona life, and we loved him for that. I loved my brother to no end, and he always knew that. That's one reason that he would always stay with me when he came home to Cincinnati. It was reciprocal. I never considered that I would come to be the oldest of the family, but here we are." Prentice, Buddy, you will be missed.