'Big game Bob' Williams, girls basketball coach at Northwest Whitfield, dies
Jul. 13—Bob Williams, the varsity girls basketball coach at Northwest Whitfield High School, has died.
Williams, who had cancer, died Thursday, according to a release by the school.
"Words cannot express how much he meant to our students, our faculty, and our community," the release said. "He had a tremendous impact on the lives of so many people and will be greatly missed. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family at this time."
Williams, nicknamed "Big game Bob" for his propensity to help lead the Lady Bruins to wins in high-profile games, took over at Northwest Whitfield in 2018. Williams led the Lady Bruins to the state playoffs in all five of his seasons in Tunnel Hill, including runs to the state's Elite 8 in both 2021-22 and 2022-23.
Prior to coming to Whitfield County, Williams worked the previous 14 seasons as the head boys basketball coach at Walker Valley High School in Cleveland, Tennessee.
Despite living with cancer, Williams continued to roam the sidelines for Northwest in recent years. In January 2022, Southeast Whitfield High School, the Lady Bruins' rivals, held a "blue-out" when Southeast matched up with Northwest. Both teams wore blue shirts adorned with white ribbons during warm-ups and the same shirts were sold to the public, with the proceeds going to Williams and his wife, Tonya.
"That's just the way this community is," Williams said at the time. "When somebody is having a hard time, they just step up."
