Wheaton (Ill.) Warrenville South senior wide receiver/safety recruit Amari Williams (6-foot-2, 170 pounds) recently gave nearby Northern Illinois University his verbal commitment. Williams, who was starting to see his overall recruiting stock rise this summer discusses his decision and more in this latest recruiting update.

"NIU just really caught my attention very early on," Williams said. "They started to recruit me during my junior year and I was able to build up a great relationship with everyone at NIU. I can easily see myself playing and attending school at NIU so I decided to commit."

Williams also pointed towards a few key factors which led to his decision to pledge to the NIU Huskies.

"NIU is really close to home and that's just super positive for my family and my friends. The NIU coaches just always had a plan for me and really made me feel wanted. NIU recruited me harder than any other school by far and that was also really important to me. NIU recruited me as both a wide receiver as well as a safety. The coaches really like me on either side of the football and they want to see where I'm at physically in a year or so before they lock in a position for me. I'm totally fine playing anywhere on the field as long as I can help the team win games."

So what are the NIU Huskies getting in Amani Williams?

"NIU is getting a very coachable player who also loves working on my craft. I'm also a leader on and off the field and I'm all about working harder to get better every day."

So which other schools did Williams consider before pledging to the NIU Huskies?

"I had a lot of interest from several schools. Iowa, Toledo, Illinois State, Western Michigan and also Ohio all had interest in me. All of those schools wanted to see me in a camp this summer and also wanted me to wait to make a decision. I just felt like NIU was just a great fit for me and I was ready to make my decision."

Amari Williams is the 18th known verbal commitment to Northern Illinois University in the Class of 2025 and also the sixth known in state commitment for the Huskies.