STANFORD, Calif. – The legacies of Thomas Booker and Noah Williams have been cemented. The duo will end their Stanford careers with appearances on the 2021 CoSIDA Academic All-America team, the organization announced on Wednesday during National Signing Day.
Both Booker and Williams were named to the first team. Booker becomes only the fourth player in program history to be named to the first team more than once, joining Don Stevenson (1975-76), John Bergren (1981-83) and Christian McCaffrey (2015-16).
This is the first appearance for Williams on the first team after he was a second-team selection in 2020. Stanford is one of five programs to have multiple players voted to the first team.
Booker, a senior from Ellicott City, Md., carries a 3.88 GPA while pursuing his degree in economics with a minor in communication. The defensive end was a finalist for the Senior CLASS Award and the William V. Campbell Trophy this season. He finished fifth on the team with 59 tackles – the most in a single season in his career – adding five TFLs and 1.5 sacks.
In addition to his academic honors this season, Booker was named second team All-Pac-12 on the defensive line. Booker was also a two-time team captain during his Cardinal career. He has twice been named CoSIDA Academic All-District, and twice been named to the Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll.
Joining the CoSIDA Academic All-America first team is Williams. The Phoenix, Ariz., native carries a 3.89 GPA while pursuing a graduate degree in management science and engineering. Williams graduated with his bachelor's degree in product design this past spring.
Williams made nine starts on the season at free safety for the Cardinal. He made 43 tackles, 28 solo, and recovered a fumble. He has twice been named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District team, twice to the Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll, and once to the Pac-12 all-academic first team.