Four years ago, Joe Paterno strolled into Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt, Md. He was looking for a kid by the name of Derrick Williams.

So was everyone else, though.

At that point, "Paterno" was merely a name on a list that included 50 other Division-I college football coaches. All of them wanted Williams -- then one of the country's finest recruits -- to play for them.

But the then-77-year-old Paterno needed the teenaged Williams most.

Paterno's Nittany Lions, once respected throughout the college football ranks, had dropped off the radar. The names associated with the Lions' proud tradition were long gone. And Paterno, one of the most beloved coaches in the history of sport, was being urged to step down.

After the millennium, the Lions had squeaked to a 26-33 record and four losing seasons in five years. Before that, Penn State had only one losing season under Paterno. So the line of thinking went -- Paterno had lost his touch.

But then he found Williams at his high school and the two sat down, Williams' high school coach, Rick Houchens recalls.

"I remember it word for word," Houchens said of Paterno's meeting with Williams. "He said, 'The game has changed to a vertical game, and now you can't run the ball anymore. You've got to have a guy that you can throw that seven- or eight-yard hitch, and he can turn it into a 50-yard or 60-yard touchdown, and that's why we need Derrick Williams.' "

And that's why Derrick Williams needed Penn State.

Williams could have gone anywhere to play, but he didn't want to be "just another guy" in another program. He didn't want to sit on the bench. He wanted to play from the start. He didn't want to be the star to rack up records. He wanted to be the difference maker that would have an immediate impact. Williams wanted to be the man to turn a program into a winner. Williams hoped he could do so in three years then head to the NFL to achieve his boyhood dream of playing football on the sport's biggest stage.

With Paterno's guarantees, Williams packed up and moved more than 200 miles north to quiet little State College.

Williams hadn't even played, yet his impact was felt immediately. Before he stepped into a pair of black cleats, Williams improved Penn State's chances on paper. His commitment sparked other highly touted players from the D.C. Metropolitan area to don the plain blue and white.

Evan Royster, Aaron Maybin and Navorro Bowman were among the notables.

"I think Derrick coming here as far as recruiting and our whole recruiting class in '05 with Derrick and Justin, who's now in the league, was big for the program," senior cornerback Lydell Sargeant said. "I think the recruits see how when you come you can really change a program."

Williams got his first wish and started from day one. His first career touchdown reception was the deciding score at Northwestern in '05. That win was the first conference win an 11-1 season. Penn State finished just seconds away from being undefeated after losing on the final play to Michigan, a game in which Williams broke his arm.

Although his freshman campaign ended early, Williams returned for Penn State's next two seasons and notched a combined 153 all-purpose yards in the Lions' Outback and Alamo Bowl wins.

Williams' impact was in full effect even when he wasn't catching balls or scoring touchdowns. With Williams occupying the interest of enemy defenders, his teammates Deon Butler and Jordan Norwood were able to contribute to Penn State's offense in a big way. As opposing defenses paid more attention to stopping Williams, Butler -- a former walk-on defensive back -- emerged. Butler is now just four catches away from Penn State's all-time record. Norwood, a smaller wideout, has found his niche in going across the middle -- fearsome territory for a receiver -- and is currently fourth on Penn State's all-time catches list.

When he can't do damage as a wideout, Williams finds other ways to terrorize defenses. With his three return touchdowns this season, Williams has the most return scores for a player in the Paterno era (5). Williams also has six rushing touchdowns and six receiving touchdowns in his career. Since Williams' Lion debut, Penn State is 38-9.

Those around him, however, attest Williams' leadership qualities are even more special than his quick feet or his knowledge of the game. That was a quality Paterno liked in the beginning, Houchens says.

Williams' knack for speaking up might not jump out at onlookers, however. When seated behind a podium, Williams speaks softly, quickly. When a camera light clicks on and the light shines in his face, Williams seems out of place, answering in as few words possible.

Houchens remembers when he first heard Williams speak up.

The coach had gathered his players to talk about goals they had for themselves and for the team that season. All of Houchens' players took a knee on their practice field. The coach looked to his seniors to offer the first comments, but only Williams -- then a sophomore -- stood up.

" 'Coach, I have some goals,' " Houchens remembers Williams saying.

Everyone was quiet, waiting for the underclassman to continue.

"I said, 'OK, Derrick, what are they?' " Houchens said. "He said, 'I'd like to be first-team all county and first-team all-Met as a sophomore.'

"You could've heard a pin drop."

Now, five years later, Houchens says he's willing to bet Williams is doing the same thing in the Penn State locker room. At 9-0, the No. 3 Lions have a good chance to make a run at the national championship, one of Williams' goals that eluded him and his teammates in 2005. If he had left for the NFL, however, Williams wouldn't have had this chance.

Williams was unsure of a lot as a freshman, especially after he broke his arm. He did know, however, he could contribute to turn Penn State around.

"I knew immediately that we had the chance to become one of the best offenses in the country," Williams said. "This year we're doing a good job, and we just have to keep it up."

Paterno has always contended, he thought his team was just a player away from reclaiming glory.

He found Derrick Williams.

"It shows some people of that kind of caliber have some faith in the program," Paterno said of Williams' Penn State career. "I thought when we were down and everyone was panicking, if we just relaxed a little we'd be OK."