Chuckie Williams Born: December 31, 1953 (Columbus, OH)
Sponsored by: Jack Parr Graduated: Columbus East High School (Columbus, OH), 1972; Kansas State University, 1976

The streak started in 1973. For the next nine seasons, a guard from the Kansas State University basketball team was named an All-Big 8 first-team performer. The streak included such Kansas Sports Hall of Fame inductees as Lon Kruger, Mike Evans, and Rolando Blackman. And right in the middle of the streak was another guard who is inducted to the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame today: Chuckie Williams.
Born in Columbus, Ohio, Williams was recruited to Kansas State by another Kansas Sports Hall of Fame inductee, head coach Jack Hartman. Once in Manhattan, Williams thrived and is one of only three Wildcats to be named a two-time first-team All-American.
A glance back through the K-State record book shows just how remarkable of a scorer Chuckie Williams was for the Wildcats. For his career, Williams holds spots in the K-State top ten in points scored, scoring average, field goals made, field goals attempted, forty point performances, thirty point performances, and twenty point performances. Perhaps the most remarkable feat: he did a majority of his scoring in just his final two seasons in Manhattan.
After lettering and playing sparingly in his freshman and sophomore seasons, Williams came into his own as a junior when he led the team in scoring with an average of 22.1 points per game. Williams set a school record for points scored in a game in 1975 when he poured in forty-seven points against Holy Cross. His scoring record stood for nineteen years.
Williams led the Wildcats to a twenty win season during his junior year and a NCAA Tournament berth. Behind his long-range shooting, the Wildcats advanced to the Elite Eight and were right on the cusp of a Final Four, losing to Syracuse in the NCAA East Regional Final, despite a thirty-five point effort from Williams. Williams was named the 1975 NCAA East Regional Most Outstanding Player for his performance during the run to the Elite Eight. He was also honored by the Big 8 Conference as a first-team selection and was named a first-team All-American by the Helms Foundation.
As a senior, Williams was named a captain of the team and picked up right where he left off the previous year. He once again led the team in scoring with an average of 20.9 points per game on his way to being named a first-team All-Big 8 and a Helms Foundation first-team All-American selection. He was also named a second-team All-America selection by several publications following his senior campaign, including The Sporting News, Converse Yearbook, and Basketball Weekly. Williams, along with teammate Mike Evans, became known across the nation for their scoring prowess and earned the Wildcats the nickname the “Purple Popguns.”
When he graduated from Kansas State, Williams held the number two spot in all-time scoring in Kansas State University history.
Williams was selected in the first round by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the fifteenth overall pick of the 1976 NBA Draft.
In 2003, Kansas State named Williams to the school’s All-Century Team and in 2006, the school retired his jersey at a ceremony in Bramlage Coliseum.
With today’s induction, another streak is complete as another of K-State’s legendary basketball guards takes his place in the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame.