"There are only eight of us."
That phrase is one quarterback Caleb Williams often thinks about when reflecting on his two-year career at University of Southern California, where he won the illustrious Heisman Trophy in 2022.
The "eight" refers to the eight players whose numbers have been retired by the school. Williams was officially welcomed into that prestigious group Saturday afternoon as he celebrated the retirement of his No. 13 jersey at halftime of USC's rivalry game against Notre Dame, just over a year after he last played for the Trojans.
"It's amazing, it's special," Williams said of his jersey retirement. "I'm super happy, super grateful. To only have eight of us out of all the players that came through USC, it's pretty cool."
During the retirement ceremony, Williams was joined on the field by his parents as well as USC's athletic director and president. The No. 1 overall pick also re-lived his college playing days by leading the Trojans — some of whom were Williams' teammates' — out of the tunnel before kickoff.
"It was really cool to be able to have that moment," Williams said. "Some of my teammates are still on the team, some of my teammates from previous years showed up. To have that moment with them, have that moment at USC and have my jersey put up next to Reggie's and Matt Leinart and all these different legends in their respective years, you can only be thankful and grateful for those opportunities. I'm super excited that my name and my jersey get to live on forever."
Bears tight end and Notre Dame alum Cole Kmet was also on hand to support Williams and his alma mater.
"It was great to have somebody to support me from here," Williams added, "somebody who has helped me since I got here, whether it's from in the huddle or us talking about how I can be better for all of us at the Bears or things we can do better as a team. He's been extremely helpful. For him to show up and show out is great. I'm not happy I have to soon wear some Irish gear, but other than that, I'm super happy he could come and support me."
For Kmet, showing up for Williams in such a special moment was an easy decision. His only complaint was Williams leaving right after the game, leaving Kmet with no time to showboat as Notre Dame got the win over USC. The tight end will make sure Williams dons some of his Fighting Irish gear before the end of the week.
"Caleb's been so supportive of me — coming to my engagement party, coming to my brother's high school game, so I thought it was important to show support for him by going out there with the time off," Kmet said. "To have your number retired at such a prestigious university is such a cool honor, so definitely wanted to be there for that. It was great to see his whole family out there supporting him and see him doing his thing. I'm glad I could be a part of it."
