Ryan Williams is supposed to be preparing to begin his senior year at Saraland High School.
Instead, the 17-year-old Williams and the rest of the Alabama football team opened up fall camp on Wednesday morning, beginning the Crimson Tide‘s preparation for the 2024 season, which opens Aug. 31 when it hosts Western Kentucky.
Williams did not arrive on campus until this summer, but still he came as one of Alabama football‘s highest touted recruits, with some comparing his game to that of former Alabama wide receivers Julio Jones and Devonta Smith. Per the 247Sports Composite, the 6-foot, 165-pound Williams ranked as the No. 2 prospect in the state’s 2024 class and the No. 3 wide receiver among that position group.
Among Alabama’s signing class, Williams was the highest-rated recruit.
He was with Alabama’s wide receiver unit on Wednesday during the media viewing portion of practice, wearing No. 2. While practice was only open to reporters for 30 minutes, Williams was already making impressive catches.
Heading into this fall, Williams is looking to make an immediate impact for the Crimson Tide. While it’s likely that the two-time Alabama Mr. Football winner and two-time Gatorade state player of the year can, there is no certainty.
What exactly is key for Williams during fall camp and what will it take for him to make an impact come this fall?
“Consistently just trending his trajectory up,” Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer said after the session. “I don’t mean from Day 1. I mean, you want every play to be amazing, explosive, but you just want him lining up right, doing the fundamental things, making the easy plays, and then because of his ability, the big ones will come. When your route is on air, run a good route, catch the ball, accelerate out with good ball security. You find those consistent fundamentals; you stack days and those plays we know he is capable of making happen.”
2024 SCHEDULE: Alabama football schedule 2024: Game times for Georgia, Wisconsin, USF, Western Kentucky
PRACTICE TAKEAWAYS: Takeaways from Alabama football’s opening day of fall camp, first fall camp under Kalen DeBoer
Williams finished his junior year at Saraland with 72 receptions for 1,324 yards and 19 touchdowns, while rushing 30 times for 261 yards and seven scores. The Spartans finished as runners-up in Class 6A, as Williams accounted for 343 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns during the state championship game.
Williams joins a position group that lost a good amount of production from 2023 but returns six members, along with Washington transfer Germie Bernard. Two of those returners for the Crimson Tide are Kobe Prentice and Kendrick Law, with Law ranking fourth on the team in receiving yards last season (314).
Heading into the opening game, it seems as if Bernard, Prentice and Law are the go-to players. However, if Williams continues to have a strong fall, perhaps he can put himself in the running to earn playing time.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Ryan Williams: What Alabama football’s Kalen DeBoer said is key for the WR
The Tuscaloosa News
