Steve Williams

Steve Williams (May 14, 1960 – December 29, 2009), better known by his ring name, "Dr. Death" Steve Williams, was an American professional wrestler, collegiate football player, and amateur wrestler.

Williams attended Lakewood High School, graduating in 1978.

He was also a member of the Sooners 1980 Orange Bowl and 1981 Sun Bowl squads.

Williams played both guard positions while at OU.

Williams graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1981 where he played football and also competed as an amateur wrestler, where he was a four time All American, finishing 6th as a freshman, 5th as a sophomore, 3rd as a junior and 2nd as a senior.

His senior year, he lost in the finals of an NCAA tournament to future 2x Olympic gold medalist Bruce Baumgartner.

Already interested in professional wrestling, Williams had a ready-made nickname that dated back to an incident in junior high wherein he had to wrestle in a hockey goalie's mask due to shattering his nose and was jokingly labeled "Dr. Death" by one of his school's coaches and his sister.

Williams started every game in 1982 for the Oklahoma Sooners at right guard.

Williams, trained for professional wrestling by Bill Watts and Buddy Landel, started wrestling in 1982 in Watts' Mid-South Wrestling.

He was named to the UPI All-Big Eight first team and played in the 1983 Fiesta Bowl.

Williams was selected by the New Jersey Generals in the 1983 USFL Territorial Draft on January 3, 1983.

He signed with the Generals on January 31, just prior to the opening of training camp.

Williams was converted to a defensive tackle in training camp.

During camp, Williams suffered a bruised knee and was placed on injured reserve for the first six games of the Generals 1983 season.

After being activated for week #10 vs. the Birmingham Stallions on May 9, Williams was the starting nose tackle for the Generals in a 22–7 loss at Giants Stadium in the Meadowlands.

The game was telecast live on ESPN.

Williams started at nose tackle the following week on May 16, in a 31–24 loss to the Michigan Panthers at the Silverdome in Pontiac, MI – a game also shown on ESPN.

He was the youngest of four children born to Gerald (died 1985) and Dottie Williams (died 2016).

He grew up in Lakewood where he also was living at time of his death with his mother.

He was on the track & field team, played football, and wrestled all four years.

In 1985, he formed a team with Ted DiBiase and feuded with Eddie Gilbert and The Nightmare.

In 1986, Mid-South was renamed the Universal Wrestling Federation and Williams went on to win the UWF Heavyweight Championship from Big Bubba Rogers.

He also won Bill Watts' UWF Heavyweight Championship in 1987.

In addition to his singles success, Williams achieved notoriety in Japan in tag team competition, winning the World Tag Team Championship eight times with notable tag team partners Terry Gordy, Gary Albright and Vader.

His tag team success continued in North America, winning tag team titles in the Mid-South (UWF), World Championship Wrestling, and NWA United States Tag Team Championship as well as winning the World's Strongest Tag Determination League twice with Gordy and Mike Rotunda.

When Jim Crockett Promotions bought the UWF in late 1987, he was one of the few UWF wrestlers to receive an initial push in the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA).

During this time he also worked for Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling, World Class Championship Wrestling and New Japan Pro-Wrestling.

Williams became involved with Jimmy Garvin's war with Kevin Sullivan's Varsity Club in 1988, often teaming with Jimmy and Ron Garvin or Ron Simmons in various matches, including a Triple Cage "Tower of Doom" match at The Great American Bash in 1988.

Williams, however, turned heel and joined the Varsity Club in late 1988.

He and Sullivan won the NWA United States Tag Team Championship at Starrcade.

They feuded with The Road Warriors and he and Mike Rotunda won the NWA World Tag Team Championship in the process.

In May 1989, Williams and Rotunda were stripped of the title, and the Varsity Club disbanded.

Not long after, Williams turned face again and had a short feud with Rotunda over who was responsible for the Varsity Club's breakup, before entering a feud with Lex Luger for the NWA United States Championship.

He was best known for his time in All Japan Pro Wrestling (AJPW) throughout the 1990s and early 2000s.

Williams was scheduled to face Luger for the title at WrestleWar '90 on February 25, 1990.

Williams was a two-time professional wrestling world heavyweight champion, having won the Herb Abraham's UWF World Heavyweight Championship on and in 1994, the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship once.

In 2004, Williams was diagnosed with throat cancer, and underwent successful surgery the following year.

He continued to wrestle on the independent circuit until his cancer returned in 2009, dying that year at the age of 49.

Williams was posthumously inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2021 as part of the Legacy Wing.

Williams was born and raised in the Denver suburb of Lakewood, Colorado.