By Dave Johnson
W&M Athletics

In his first five seasons of college football, Caylin Newton played for five different head coaches. Yet it was the first one who truly inspired him, who made him feel confident and truly appreciated.

Which is why, for his sixth and final year of eligibility, Newton chose to come home. Not to Howard, where his career began in 2017. But to William & Mary, a place he knew little about but had a strong drawing card in head coach Mike London.

It was London who gave Newton the keys to Howard's "Go-Go" offense as a true freshmen. It was London who showed he cared by always being available for a conversation. And it was London who, after three years apart, Newton wanted to be his coach again.

"It's crazy how full circle life is," said Newton, the Tribe's leading receiver with 18 catches for 281 yards and two touchdowns. "The day I committed here, I told Coach London that no matter what, I had to play for him again. That meant so much to me.

"You see the ins and outs, the good and the bad, of college football. But not many people have a coach who truly cares, who you want to run through a brick wall for. That's something I wanted to be a part of again."

Newton came to William & Mary with the understanding he wouldn't be playing quarterback, the position he mastered for nearly 2½ seasons at Howard. His playing time would come at wide receiver, where W&M had a pressing need, and on special teams. Understand, Newton had been no ordinary quarterback. In 25 games at Howard, he totaled 7,194 yards (5,876 passing, 1,318 rushing) and 58 touchdowns (41 passing, 17 rushing). In his debut with the Bison, he accounted for 330 yards and three touchdowns in a 43-40 win at UNLV, which had been a 45-point favorite.

But after Newton's sophomore season in 2018, London left Howard for William & Mary. In the fall of '19, with the Bison's program in a leadership transition, Newton was one of several players who entered the transfer portal. He maintained that year of eligibility by playing in only four games.

Having earned his degree in sports management at Howard, Newton enrolled in graduate school at Auburn — where his brother, Cam, won the Heisman Trophy in 2010. In two seasons, he played mostly on special teams. He blocked a punt and deflected another. On offense, he had one catch for 31 yards.

Because of the pandemic, the NCAA granted all athletes whose seasons had been affected an extra year of eligibility. Given that chance, Newton wanted only to play. He had no interest in making demands.

"He just wants to help the team," London said. "It wasn't about playing quarterback again."

Still, adjusting to wide receiver didn't come overnight. Despite popular opinion, having superior athletic ability isn't all it takes.

"The techniques and fundamentals of being a receiver were more challenging than I had thought," Newton said. "How can I get open against a cornerback who has been playing that position his entire life?"

As for special teams, Newton received a crash course in the SEC.

"My awakening was on kickoff return blocking Travon Walker and trying to bring it," said Newton, referring to the former Georgia All-American and No. 1 pick in last spring's NFL Draft. "That gave me a good introduction to the physicality of special teams."

(Tale of the tape: Walker goes 6-foot-5, 275 pounds; Newton is 6-0, 210).

As for where his final chapter of college football would be, Newton had no early favorites. But after entering the portal, he was contacted by a familiar name — Mike London Jr., who had been Howard's receivers coach and now had the same role at William & Mary.

"He sent a picture of us together back at Howard," Newton said. "That brought back so many memories."

London Jr. remembers that text.

"I think it was after his second touchdown (against UNLV) when he came to the sideline and we did the chest-bump," he said. "I wasn't sure if he had the same number, but I sent him that picture with the emoji eyes."

So Newton chose William & Mary, which in addition to the Londons has three assistant coaches who came from Howard: Vincent Brown (defensive coordinator) Ras-I Dowling (defensive backs) and Keenan Carter (defensive line). Newton also been reunited with safety Tye Freeland, who played for the Bison from 2017-19 before transferring to W&M in '21.

Averaging 15.6 yards a reception at W&M, Newton has emerged as a legitimate playmaker. His 75-yard touchdown reception against Elon is the Tribe's longest play of the season. After crossing the goal line, Newton looked into the stands, brought his fists to his chest and jerked them back as if to open a shirt.

In other words, he did Cam's trademark Superman pose. And guess who was in Zable's stands that afternoon grinning ear to ear?

"He surprised me," Caylin said. "Moments before the kickoff, I saw my girlfriend and her dad and then I see this big ol' guy with a camera or something. I was like, 'Oh, my god!' That was a burst of energy."

On special teams, Newton has six tackles (four coming against Elon) and is averaging 11.6 yards on punt returns. He's been named the Tribe's Special Teams Player of the Week in each of the last two games.

"He wears a lot of different hats because he's got a very diverse skill set," special teams coach Bo Revell said. "He's done a great job every week making impactful plays."

Impactful at positions he couldn't have envisioned playing four years ago at Howard. But he never let that derail his final season.

"He's done a fantastic job of (asking) 'Coach, what do you need me to do?'" London Sr. said. "He's a selfless player who just wants to help the team win.

"He just wants to be recognized as Caylin Newton. He's done that, and I'm proud of him. I could go on and on talking about him because I've been around him for a while. I know his story."

Newton already has two degrees — his B.S. from Howard and a Master's in Community Planning from Auburn. At W&M, he's finishing requirements for his M.A. Ed in elementary education.

"Yep," Newton said, "this game has been generous to me."

And full circle has been a nice path.

"I had to play for Coach London again," Newton said. "I believe in him and what he stands for. I don't think I could have played for anybody else."