Editor's note: Jadaen Williams-Pringle died Friday night of complications from stage four renal cell carcinoma. Spectrum News 1 spoke with Jadaen, his family and his teammates before his death and wanted to share the story as it was originally done. 

AUSTIN, Texas — Jadaen Williams-Pringle was introduced to the game of football at the age of 5. He was put in a flag football game for the first time without knowing anything, but it didn’t take long for him to know this was his new passion.

“He took to it like a duck to water,” says Joan Williams, Jadaen’s grandmother. “He loves and breathes everything football.”

Jadaen spent part of his childhood growing up in New York, but when he moved to Austin a few years ago, it meant that he would get to play high school football in Texas.

“I was excited because being in New York I wanted to play big, but I knew there wasn’t a lot of chances,” says Jadaen. “I wanted to go to a high school that was good with football and I could do all this stuff.”

As Jadaen was getting ready to choose which high school he wanted to attend in Austin, a coach came to his middle school to talk about coming to Eastside Early College and be a difference maker in that program. That coach was Panthers head man Luis Beccera III. 

“I just kept seeing the same coach, I was like I don’t know who that was,” says Jadaen. “I ended up seeing Coach Beccera when he came to the school, and I was like maybe I can rebuild the school or something. I was like alright I’ll go.”

Eastside was far from a football powerhouse, in fact, they hadn’t won a game since 2017. But Jadaen saw a chance to be a part of the change and a chance to play quarterback.

“I started practicing a little bit, and once I got used to it, I was like, quarterback is the position I want to play,” says Jadaen.

That is exactly the position he played last year on the JV team at Eastside. The plan was for him to be the starter under center on varsity this year as a sophomore.

“A lot of the guys knew what his ability was, what his leadership was,” says Eastside head coach Luis Becerra III. “Everyone was excited for the next 3 years, and they knew what Jadaen was going to bring and the difference he was going to be for this program.”

The 2024 season was going to be the one that started the turnaround at Eastside, but just a few weeks before the first game, Jadaen received some life altering news. He’d been having back pain for a while, but the pain increased one day and he needed to be taken to the hospital. Tests revealed that he had cancer, more specifically, stage four renal cell carcinoma.

“It’s in his kidneys, and it has spread to his lungs,” says Joan. “It’s a rare form, so this is why there’s not really a treatment per se for it. They are trying these different types of chemo to keep it at bay or shrink it.”

The treatment has taken its toll on Jadaen, and he’s been in and out of the hospital many times over the past few months. When his team found out the news, it hit the guys pretty hard.

“I was very emotional, the whole team was,” says Douglas Sterling, a sophomore at Eastside. “It was unexpected, and we just hope he gets better.”

“It was definitely heart-breaking,” says Beccera III “It’s been an interesting season to navigate because of that.”

But the Panthers played on and did so with Jadaen on their mind. In September, Eastisde beat John Paul II, snapping a 54-game losing streak. It would be the first of 3 wins for them this season, one of which Jadaen got to see from the sidelines.

“I do play to make him happy because I know he wants to be on the field more than anybody else,” says Sterling. “We’re going to do it for you.”

“To play in honor of him instead of having him on the field with us has been something special,” says Becerra III. “While he’s not here physically, his heart is still here with the boys and with the program.”

Throughout the season, Jadaen stayed in contact with his teammates and offered them advice and tips. Whether he’s been able to be there or been watching from the hospital, Jadaen followed as closely as possible all season. 

“Football keeps him grounded, keeps him sane,” says Joan. “This is what is driving him right now for him to try to get better because he wants to get back on the football field.”

Jadaen’s ultimate goal is to be the one in uniform, taking that first snap of the season for Eastside in 2025. 

“I keep telling him we’re not going to stop fighting, we’re fighters, we fight for everything we want,” says Joan. “This is one fight we’re going to keep fighting until the end. We’re not going to back down with anything at all.”