Former Florida State Seminoles fullback Clarence 'Pooh Bear' Williams killed in car crash

Clarence “Pooh Bear” Williams was a hometown hero in Crescent City, Florida, and a fan favorite at Florida State in the mid-1990s.

Quintin Lewis, meanwhile, had just started teaching and coaching at Crescent City High when he first met Williams.

The pair immediately became close friends, so much so that Lewis - Rickards High’s veteran football coach – described Williams as “a brother from another mother.”

Friends and family mourned Thursday when news spread that Williams, a beloved fullback on the Seminoles’ 1993 national championship team, was killed in a car crash near his Crescent City hometown.

He was 47.

“This is so tough,” said Lewis, who was hired at Rickards in 2012 from Crescent City.

“He was such a tremendous person and a pillar in that community. Those kids looked up to him. And he was so good to me and encouraged me when I got into coaching. He was just finding that niche in what he wanted to do with the rest of his life.”

Williams always seemed larger than life because of his infectious smile, lovable nickname and large physique. He was divorced with three children, according to Lewis. Lewis also laughed and said he often joked with Williams, saying “I thought fans were saying ‘Boooo’ until I realized it was ‘Pooh.’ He helped me through so much in my life.”

Williams was nicknamed 'Pooh Bear' by his grandmother, rushed for 5,090 yards (the seventh best total in Florida prep history at the time) at Crescent City and “always had a smile on his face and was a heck of a fullback," according to former FSU running backs coach Billy Sexton. 

Williams averaged 6.8 yards on 39 carries during his freshman season that saw the Seminoles win the program’s first national championship. Williams, however, struggled to keep his weight down after hurting his knee in 1994.

 In 1995, he scored 12 touchdowns and finished his career with 472 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns on 109 carries. Williams played briefly for the Buffalo Bills before he returned to Crescent City, located an hour northwest of Daytona Beach.

Williams served as the head football coach at Crescent City and later became a manager at the Winn Dixie there. Williams also had recently returned to help coach defensive backs at Palatka High in 2021 and was tabbed to become the team's defensive coordinator. 

Travis Kennell, 45 - Williams’ cousin – spent so much time together growing up they called each other brothers. Kennell, who currently lives in New Jersey, was heartbroken by Thursday’s news.

“I have so many memories – we basically did everything together. I was his shadow,” said Kennell, who also often stayed with Williams during his time in Tallahassee. “Going hunting, swimming, riding bikes, parties, we just basically did it all together and it was magnificent.

"This definitely hurts my heart.”