Utah State linebacker Anthony Williams has signed a free agent contract with the New England Patriots it was announced on Monday.

Williams becomes the eighth Utah State football player from this past season to move on to the NFL as running back Devante Mays was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the seventh round (238th pick), while defensive end Ricky Ali'ifua (Kansas City Chiefs), defensive back Marquan Ellison (Seattle Seahawks), defensive back Daniel Gray (Arizona Cardinals), tight end Wyatt Houston (Kansas City Chiefs), and offensive linemen Jake Simonich (Houston Texans) and Austin Stephens (Carolina Panthers) all signed free agent contracts.

Williams, a 6-foot-1, 245-pounder from Philadelphia, Pa. (Upper Dublin HS/L.A. Pierce JC) made six starts and played in all 12 games during the 2016 season and led the team in tackles with 96 (48-solo, 48-assist), which included 6.5 tackles for loss and 2.0 sacks to rank tied for second and third on the team, respectively. Williams also ranked tied for second on the team with three quarterback hurries, to go along with one pass breakup. Overall, he ranked tied for 14th in the Mountain West with his 8.0 tackles per game and had a team-best five double-digit tackle outings during the season, including back-to-back 13-tackle performances against Wyoming and New Mexico.

In his two seasons at Utah State, Williams played in 25 games with seven starts and recorded 106 total tackles (52-solo, 54-assist), which included 2.0 sacks and 7.0 tackles for loss, while adding one forced fumble and one pass breakup.

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