The legacy of WSU wide receivers Josh Kelly and Kyle Williams will forever be linked, not just for their position and performance, but because of their journey and friendship.

Kelly and Williams have known each other for a long time, going back to their days in the Mountain West Conference at Fresno State and University of Nevada Las Vegas, respectively. So naturally, the two visited and transferred to WSU together this offseason as well.

Once in the transfer portal, they were both contacted by Stacey Ford, WSU football’s director of recruiting. On their visit they both saw what they were looking for: a new opportunity in a family-like environment, Kelly said.

For Kelly, it was a shift in priorities from wanting to stay close to his home in Fresno, California but going to FSU to finding a new opportunity with a new direction and offensive coordinator just up the road at WSU. 

Connecting with quarterback Cam Ward and with the new system took a little longer than expected, Williams said. But the connection between Kelly and Williams, Kelly said, was ‘faster than expected.’

“With us two on the field, it was an instant connection. And we piggyback on each other. We talk a lot about what we see on the field. We do drills and stuff together just to try to get each other better. So our connection was faster than expected because of where we came from,” Kelly said.

The two have the same goal, Williams said, and when you have the same goal it is easy to click.

The two hang out off the field as well, continuously trying to build their bond.

“I’ll be whipping him in 2K, Madden, just even off the field just getting together, watching film, just hanging out in the locker room. In the free time we get where we’re not napping, just trying to get together,” Williams said. “It’s easier for us to click on that level and then, shit, [Kelly is] like my best friend right now.”

Kelly responded to the allegations and said:“That’s cap, we gotta look back at the scores.”

The two are competitive on and off the field. Off the field, it is mainly video games, which Kelly said he believes he is better at in reference to William’s statement. But on the field they compete by seeing who is faster (which Kelly took credit for), or who can drop fewer passes and finish, Williams said.

“There’s times where he’ll call me out and say keep finishing, finish, finish, finish. Or there are times where it’s like ‘ok you looking sluggish,’ like let’s finish and just those friendly competitions,” Williams said.

Kelly described Williams as someone who can take the top off a defense and run the intermediate routes. Kelly is an all-around threat, who is always physical and aggressive and looks to impose his will on defenders, he said. Williams gave one word that describes his overall game.

“Different,” Williams said. “I just feel like you could put me anywhere, and I could run any route, any play that you want me to make, I’m available to do that.”

Both Williams and Kelly had career games in week four against Oregon State, with Kelly hauling in eight catches for 159 yards and three touchdowns and Williams reeling in seven catches for 174 yards and a touchdown. While it was a breakout game for them statistically, the work up to this point is what made it possible. 

“I feel like I’ve been doing that ever since I played football. But it was just this past offseason. Just the nights where I was putting in extra work, going in three times a day when we had our off breaks,” Williams said. 

“My senior year of high school I was able to see the potential I had in myself,” Kelly said. “Where I wanted to go was gonna have to be on me at the end of the day.”

The two have formed a key duo on the field in the wake of a mass turnover of the receiver room since last season.

Both Kelly and Williams do it for their family, they said. But more than just that, Kelly works to prove himself right.

“If I stopped playing football today, [my family] is still gonna love me but it’s just while I’m on that field, I wanna have them smiling and happy,” Kelly said. “Also just for myself, just proving myself right, not really worried about other people […] And knowing that I have the ability to play at the next level and play the games I want to play.”

For Williams, family is a key, but more specifically he plays for his niece and nephew he said.

“They haven’t had everything they wanted since they’ve been around and it’s just seeing them cheer me on through the TV screen and them calling me saying how happy they are to be able to see me play, it just gives me a boost of motivation where I want to be able to give them everything I can,” Williams said.

Both play for their family, but just like everyone else, they have idols they look up to as well. When adding to their game, Kelly takes bits and pieces from the legendary Jerry Rice, as well as current receivers like Justin Jefferson, Davante Adams and Keenan Allen, he said.

Williams, however, has always looked up to Steve Smith Sr. and Stefon Diggs, he said. He looks up to Smith Sr. because of his mentality and approach to the game and relates to him as they both have been doubted in the past due to their size. Meanwhile, he looks up to Diggs for his creativity, because ‘the wide receiver position is art.’

Just like many great athletes, Kelly and Williams have a routine to follow on gameday. For Williams, he just needs to be able to stick to his routine, and play his music, especially ‘Rod Wave,’ he said. Kelly on the other hand is also locked into his routine, but don’t try to be social with him before it is time to go.

“I don’t really like to talk to people [pre-game]. Like people call me, I don’t like getting calls, I don’t like being called before a game. I hate talking to people. It takes my focus away from what I need to be focused on,” Kelly said.

When it comes to game time, or even on the practice field or in the film room, both guys are better described as visual leaders, they said. Williams sees himself as more of a ‘big brother’ than a leader as he tries to help the younger guys however he can but does not ‘demand anything from nobody.’

It is similar for Kelly, except he leads by letting the rest of the guys see his demeanor toward everyone and how he practices, he said. In the receiver room, not everything has to be vocalized.

One of the biggest things to be learned from the duo is how they balance their football, school and personal life. The key when you find what to do in life is to find a routine and make sacrifices to get what you want, Williams said. 

“Not wasting time on going to parties or going out and stuff like that. Dedicate yourself to your craft and try to get better each and every day,” Kelly said. “For me, it’s just watching film or watching NFL highlights and just trying to find bits and pieces of the offensive side that I can put to myself.”

Both guys are just in year one on the Palouse, but they are Cougs. They know what the phrase ‘Cougs vs. Everybody’ truly means because they’ve done the work from Spring to Fall themselves, despite the noise, Williams said.

“Being a Coug man, it’s amazing. I say family-oriented here because everybody’s so welcoming. And they’re so thankful,” Williams said. “We had outside voices but they wasn’t doing the work with us. So when we say Cougs vs. Everybody, it’s just us at the end of the day. We are the ones that did them gritty hours and now we have to put on in the spotlight.” 

There is still a lot of season left for both guys, with Williams being a junior, and Kelly a redshirt junior. But both have big goals for the rest of the season and beyond. This year, Williams said, the goal for the receiver group is to keep climbing, and be the best in the nation.

As a team, the goal is to be Apple Cup and Pac-12 Champions. But for Williams, the goal is to take it one week at a time because you only get so long as a college athlete, he said.

The goal beyond WSU both agreed is the NFL. But when the cleats are hung up, Williams said, he wants to stick around the football field and coach or go into broadcast and give back to the community and the game. 

“I don’t play just for the fans, the spotlight or the money. No, I play ’cause I actually love football,” Williams said.

As a football player, the goal is the NFL, Kelly said. And he is trying not to think of anything else outside of that.

“Once you get to thinking about other stuff, your main focus isn’t your main focus anymore. Now you’re worried about ‘what if I don’t,’ all these things running through your mind. So I try to keep a straight and narrow focus on my personal end goal and result and try to work towards that,” Kelly said.

With WSU’s offensive production, there’s plenty of production to be had for the new dynamic duo. And no matter whether it is playing Madden, 2K or football, Kelly and Williams do it all linked by an ever-growing bond.