Ryan Williams broke the internet as a true freshman. His sophomore year cooled off. Now he's a preseason All-American with a Heisman number — and because he reclassified, Alabama gets him for two more years before he can even leave.
As a true freshman in 2024 he was a national sensation: 48 catches, 865 yards, eight touchdowns, the highlight every Saturday. The 2025 sophomore line was quieter — 49 catches, 689 yards, four scores — the kind of step back that, for a player this hyped, becomes the whole storyline. The voters didn't blink: he's a preseason first-team All-American across nearly every outlet and a live Heisman candidate entering 2026. The detail that reframes everything is his age. Williams reclassified up to sign a year early, so he's a junior who won't be draft-eligible until 2027 — Alabama's clear No. 1 target with a runway almost no star his age has. The forward stakes are simple: the bounce-back season that turns a quieter sophomore year back into a generational trajectory. For Williams, 2026 is a contention year, not a farewell.
How he plays
Williams is a vertical separator — a slim, wiry frame (listed around 6-0, 180) carrying genuine track speed (he's run 10.49 in the 100 meters). Our play-by-play backs the big-play profile: 78th-percentile yards-per-catch, 85th-percentile EPA per target, a 72nd-percentile explosive-catch rate — the chunk-play element of a true downfield weapon, and a 78th-percentile catch rate on top of it. Scouts (Ourlads/draft profiles) credit the "initial burst and long speed to easily separate from DBs" and consistent ball-tracking over his shoulder. The honest edge is the one his sophomore tape raised: the drop rate ticked up, and evaluators note "his hands need to improve." He's a take-the-top-off vertical threat who also works the intermediate level — and at his age, the polish is supposed to come.