The curtain has closed on Carnell “Cadillac” Williams’ time at Auburn — for now, anyways.

Williams announced his plans to step down from his post as Auburn’s running backs coach and associate head coach late Thursday evening — marking the end of a five-year coaching stint on The Plains.

But truth be told, Williams has been a part of well beyond these past five years.

And the ones that came before those? They were nothing short of incredible, too.

Here’s a look back at Williams’ start at Auburn, his exit from Auburn and everything that came between.

1999 — The nickname

Ahead of his junior season at Etowah High School in Attalla, Ala., Carnell Williams was just that — Carnell Williams.

There was no mention of a “Cadillac” or any other automobile until the junior running back put together a brilliant season, helping Etowah capture a state championship.

“That year I had almost 2,600 yards, 36-someodd touchdowns, state champs,” Williams said during an interview in 2022. “And all these people were like, ‘Hey, you heard your new nickname? Cadillac.’”

The nickname, which Williams all but loved at first, originated from the mouth of former Birmingham-area sportscaster Mike Raita, who worked for ABC 33/40 when Williams was in high school.

“Remember, this was back in the 1990s before Cadillac came out with all these sporty cars,” Williams said, “and when I thought of a Cadillac, all I thought of was big and smooth and slow. I didn’t like it at all.”

Eventually, Williams came to embrace the nickname — as if he had much of a choice considering how quickly it caught on.

Jan. 29, 2001 — The commitment

On Jan. 29, 2001, Williams was the center of attention of a press conference at Etowah High School.

Throughout his recruitment, nearly every program in the Southeast expressed interest in Williams. And rightfully so after the running back tallied more than 4,300 rushing yards and 51 touchdowns during his career at Etowah.

In a visit to Tennessee in early January of 2001, Williams verbally committed to the Volunteers.

The next night, then-Auburn head coach Tommy Tuberville paid Williams and his family an in-house visit.

Williams went on to take one last visit to Alabama just days before his scheduled press conference.

“Before a packed house of fellow students and media at Etowah High School, Williams pulled off his jacket to reveal an Auburn jersey underneath,” AL.com’s Creg Stephenson wrote in a 2016 article.

Fall of 2001 — A freshman with the Tigers

When Williams arrived to The Plains as a true freshman in 2001, he was the No. 3 running back on the depth chart behind Casinious Moore and Ronnie Brown.

Williams still appeared in nine games that season, immediately seeing the field on Sept. 1, 2001 in a 30-0 win over Ball State. Williams rushed nine times for just 10 yards in his debut, but also caught three passes for 36 yards.

Come Oct. 27 as the Tigers hit the road for a visit to Arkansas, Williams broke out.

Though the 17th-ranked Tigers were upset by the Razorbacks 42-17, Williams carried the football 19 times for a total of 177 yards and a touchdown.

The following week, the Auburn offense looked for Williams’ production again — this time against the 19th-ranked Georgia Bulldogs. And with a 177-yard effort on a whopping 41 carries, Williams eclipsed the goal line twice to help the Tigers beat the Bulldogs.

Fall of 2002 — A sophomore season cut short

As Williams found his footing late in his freshman season, his sophomore year was shaping up to be a big one.

And at the start, it was just that as Williams worked his way to being the SEC’s leading rusher through the first seven games of the season.

However, against Florida on Oct. 21, 2002, Williams broke his left fibula during Auburn’s third possession, ending his sophomore season.

“He cracked a bone in his leg, and it will be operated on Monday,” Tuberville said after the game. “He will be out for about 12-15 weeks.”

Cut short by his injury, Williams finished his sophomore season having tallied 787 yards and10 touchdowns on 141 attempts.

Fall of 2003 — Cadillac goes crazy — and for 1,300-plus yards

Heading into his junior season at Auburn, Williams was set to share rushing duties with Ronnie Brown, who was a redshirt junior at the time.

However, when Brown tweaked a hamstring early in the year, it was Williams who took on a bulk of the starting reps for the Tigers. As a result, Williams rushed for 1,307 yards and 17 touchdowns on 241 carries in 2003.

In terms of yardage, Williams biggest game of the season came against the Crimson Tide on Nov. 22 — an Iron Bowl that saw Auburn beat Alabama 28-23 on the back of Williams’ 204 rushing yards and pair of touchdowns.

But it was Williams’ first carry that November Saturday in Jordan-Hare Stadium that the phrase “Go crazy, Cadillac!” was born as the late Rod Bramblett called Williams’ 80-yard touchdown scamper on the very first play of the game.

Also highlighting Williams’ 2003 campaign was record-breaking, six-touchdown performance against Mississippi State. To this day, no running back in Auburn history has broke Williams six-touchdown single-game record. Kerryon Johnson came the closest in 2017 after rushing for five touchdowns against Missouri.

Fall of 2004 — A perfect senior season

In 2004, Williams made the decision to return for his final year on The Plains, joining Ronnie Brown and quarterback Joe Campbell as returners on the Tigers’ seasoned offense.

And as they and the Tigers adopted “Hard Fighting Soldier” as their anthem, Auburn went on to finish the season a perfect 13-0, which included a Sugar Bowl victory over Virginia Tech.

For the second year in a row, Williams led Auburn’s rushing efforts in 2004, posting 1,165 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns on 239 carries.

That season, Williams’ biggest game of the year came against Kentucky on Oct. 23 as he rushed for 149 yards and two touchdowns on 17 carries.

But it was against Alabama on Nov. 20, 2004 that Williams scored his 44th rushing touchdown of his career, breaking Bo Jackson’s record of 43 career touchdowns.

Williams went on to haul in All-American honors and was named to the All-SEC first team as both a running back and return specialist.

When Williams’ 2004 season came to a close, so did his playing career at Auburn. In four seasons, Williams tallied 3,381 rushing yards and 45 touchdowns on 741 carries. Williams also polished off his Auburn career with 5,033 all-purpose yards — a mark good for second in program history.

April 23, 2005 — Draft Day

After Williams and then-Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Jon Gruden hit it off during the Senior Bowl, Williams thought he might land with the Bucs, who had the fifth-overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft.

When Williams’ phone rang on April 23, 2005, Gruden’s voice was on the other end of the line.

“Hey Cadillac, you ready to roll?,” Williams recalls Gruden asking him.

And with the No. 5 pick, Williams became the second Auburn running back to be drafted in the first round. Ronnie Brown was taken up by the Miami Dolphins — then coached by Nick Saban — with the second-overall pick.

2005-2011 — Williams goes pro

Williams spent seven years in the NFL — six of which he played with the Buccaneers. Williams spent the 2011 season — his final in the league — with the St. Louis Rams.

During his first season in Tampa Bay, Williams started 14 games for the Buccaneers and went on to tally 1,178 rushing yards — a number that led rookie rushers in 2005 and paved the way for Williams to be named NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year by the Associated Press.

Williams’ NFL career was hindered by injuries as he suffered a pair of torn patellar tendons — one in each knee.

At the close of his professional career, Williams had tallied 4,047 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns on 1,055 carries, which were divvied up across 81 games.

Jan. 23, 2019 — Cadillac returns to The Plains

In late January of 2019, after Williams had spent the following two seasons as running backs coach at prep powerhouse IMG Academy, former Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn announced the addition of Williams.

“Carnell Williams is one of Auburn’s all-time greats and we’re excited to welcome him home,” Malzahn said of the then-36-year-old in a statement. “Cadillac is a great fit for our program. He understands and cares deeply for this university and the Auburn football program, while bringing a great knowledge of the game.”

Williams was brought in to replace Tim Horton, who coached Auburn’s running backs during Malzahn’s first six seasons on The Plains before resigning for an off-the-field role.

“I’m ecstatic, super excited and humbled to have the opportunity to return home to Auburn and coach at a place that helped me become the man I am today,” Williams said in a statement. “I’m very grateful and appreciative of Coach Malzahn, the staff and the Auburn administration for this opportunity. Words can’t explain the emotions I had when I received the offer from Coach Malzahn.”

Oct. 31, 2022 — Williams gets “interim” tag

On busy Halloween in Auburn — one that saw former Auburn head coach Bryan Harsin be fired — Williams was elevated to the Tigers’ interim head coach and would be responsible for piloting the Auburn program in its final four games.

Sitting at 3-5 on the year, the Tigers still had games against Mississippi State, Texas A&M, Western Kentucky and Alabama left on their schedule.

Nov. 12, 2022 — The revival

In Williams’ first game as Auburn’s interim head coach, he and the Tigers hit the road for Starkville, where they’d meet the Mississippi Bulldogs. And while while Auburn erasing a 21-point halftime deficit to come up just short was special, it paled in comparison to the following Saturday at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Williams walked to the mouth of the home-team tunnel at Jordan-Hare Stadium, arms locked with the players around him. When a microphone was pushed out in front of his face to get any pregame comments, the only words Williams could find were “Let’s play ball.”

And four four quarters, Williams led the resurrection of a program that was left for dead.

Auburn went on to beat Texas A&M 13-10 that night in Jordan-Hare, giving Williams his first win as Auburn head coach.

“Auburn football going to be OK,” Williams said after the game. “It ain’t dead. It ain’t dead. We comin’.”

Nov. 29, 2022 — Williams is retained, elevated under Freeze

While some Auburn fans lobbied for Williams to be hired to replace Harsin, it was Hugh Freeze who was introduced as Auburn’s head coach on Nov. 29, 2022.

However, not blind to what Williams had done for the morale of Auburn’s locker room and fanbase, Freeze was quick to not only retain Williams as the Tigers’ running backs coach, but also elevated Williams to associate head coach.

“What I witnessed, I thought, was one of the most outstanding jobs of leadership that I’ve ever witnessed in college football,” Freeze said during his introductory press conference. “Being in this profession, I know how hard it is to finish seasons even when you’re doing well, even when you’re bowl eligible much less finishing a season playing with enthusiasm and passion and desire and excitement and having fun like what I witnessed when I turned on the Auburn football games. To me, it was a direct reflection of Cadillac and his leadership and how he led the staff and those young men. I thought it was a brilliant job.”

Jan. 11, 2024 — Williams resigns

Late in the evening of Jan. 11, Cadillac Williams stepped down from his post as Auburn’s running backs coach and associate head coach.

“After taking time to pray and reflect, I have made the decision to resign from my position with Auburn football to pursue other opportunities,” Williams wrote in a statement. “I love Auburn, the players and AU family with all my heart, but this decision is what is best for me, my wife and sons. I am extremely grateful for the coaching opportunity given to me first by Coach Malzahn and most recently by Coach Freeze. These past five years on the Plains have been nothing short of incredible.”

Williams’ departure came after he spent five seasons as Auburn’s running backs coach and one season as associate head coach under Freeze.

“We are incredibly appreciative of Carnell and what he’s done for the Auburn football program during his time on the coaching staff,” Freeze said in a statement. “He led Auburn through a time of transition and is one of the program’s all-time greats. I know this wasn’t easy for him, but I respect his decision and wish him nothing but the best.”