Eli Drinkwitz Praises Alabama's Ryan Williams' Natural Talent

The Crimson Tide's leading pass-catcher might be young, but his skillset defies his age and inexperience.

Alabama wide receiver Ryan Williams (2) is tackled by Tennessee defensive back Jermod McCoy (3) after making the catch during an SEC conference game between Tennessee and Alabama in Neyland Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 19, 2024. / Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Arguably the Alabama Crimson Tides' biggest surprise and the Missouri Tigers' biggest challenge sits at the receiver spot.

After re-classing into the 2024 recruiting class, freshman Ryan Williams has exceeded expectations as the leading receiver for the Crimson Tide.

Williams is, yes, only 17 years old and is already wowing the college football world. He's displayed impressive strength at the catch point and most notably, the ability to extend plays after the catch. His age and year tell people that he should not be as productive and talented as he is, but maybe Williams is just that special.

Alabama is a roster loaded with talent with plenty of offensive weapons that can beat a team, but Williams stands out above the rest. Missouri football head coach Eli Drinkwitz has the pleasure of formulating a plan to limit Williams, but dancing around his talent is challenging.

“Special player, special talent, obviously.” Drinkwitz said.

Not much more needs to be said about Williams. He is a special talent at such a young age and has been productive since week one of his first season. Williams has a variety of skillsets that stand out to the people tuning in to watch, but his ability to compete and win stands out and is evident.

"There's a competitive quality that he has that is special and I don't know that age is that big of a factor if you have those kind of gifts,” Drinkwitz said. 

So far this season, Williams has recorded 649 yards and seven touchdowns on 31 receptions. His clutch factor has been highlighted in multiple games, coming out in a win against the Georgia Bulldogs. Against the Bulldogs in a massive ranked matchup, Williams showed the world what he was capable of doing.

"I think aside from the size, ball skills, speed, quickness, agility, obviously attention to detail and ability to retain information, I think there's just a competitive spirit about him that's pretty impressive for him to make those plays, specifically in Georgia,” Drinkwitz said. 

Against Georgia, Williams posted 177 receiving yards on six receptions, adding a late touchdown to his statline as well. That final touchdown was an incredible presentation of balance, speed and coordination to both bring down the pass and beat his defenders.

Williams presents as a receiver that the Missouri secondary may struggle to contain. Yard-after-catch receivers, like Auburn's Cam Coleman and Texas A&M's Terry Bussey, are all receivers that burn you deep down the field or with the ball in their hands. Williams can do it all, but once he has the ball in the open field, he can be hard to stop. Cornerbacks Toriano Pride Jr., Nic DeLoach and Dreyden Norwood, whichever of that group guards Williams, will have their hands full.

He most recently helped the Crimson Tide battle the Tennessee Volunteers, finishing with 73 receiving yards, eight receptions and his seventh touchdown of the season. The game resulted in a loss for the visiting Crimson Tide, but his efforts kept it within reach.

Williams isn't the only talented receiving threat on the Alabama roster. Washington transfer Germie Bernard has proven to be solid secondary option and Kobe Prentice and Kendrick Law have also both proved their worth.

Regardles of the other talent, Williams clearly stands out. It's also abundantly clear that he learns game-to-game from his mistakes and has been able to show visible improvements. Despite his age, Williams plays at a veteran-level. He won't be eligible for the NFL draft for another two seasons, so college football will have no choice but to deal with the force that is Ryan Williams for the forseeable future.

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