Ryan Williams outpacing the Alabama Football greats who came before him

It was only a matter of time before Ryan Williams made his mark on Alabama Football. The two-time Mr. Football in the state of Alabama was so good it was an obvious decision for him to forego the final year of his high school career and reclassify into the 2024 recruiting class.

Every defensive back on Saraland's schedule breathed a sigh of relief when Williams made that decision. As much as he's tormented college defensive backs through the first three weeks of his collegiate career, can you imagine what he would be doing to high schoolers right now?

Williams was the big fish that Kalen DeBoer had to reel in when he first got hired. Williams was a long-time 'Bama commitment, but backed off his pledge once Nick Saban announced his retirement in January. He reaffirmed his commitment to Alabama a few weeks later and officially signed with the Crimson Tide in February.

What makes what Williams has done so far even crazier is the fact that he didn't go through spring practice. He was still finishing up what he needed to do at Saraland to be able to graduate early, so he didn't join Alabama for practice until the summer. And yet, Williams still started his first game at Alabama, and it took no time for him to immediately make his presence felt.

He scored touchdowns both times he touched the ball against Western Kentucky. For rival fans hoping it was beginner's luck, they were dismayed when Williams found the endzone again the following week against USF in a clutch moment in the fourth quarter. For the most disillusioned naysayers, they hoped that Williams was just taking advantage of smaller schools.

Then he led Alabama in receiving for the third game in a row, and hauled in a first quarter touchdown at Camp Randall on a dime by Jalen Milroe. Four plus two equals six, and it will keep equaling six many times this season.

Williams is off to a torrid start to his rookie season in college football. He's caught 10 passes for 285 yards and four touchdowns in three games.

Alabama has had a long history of great freshmen wide receivers since the Nick Saban era began in 2007. There was Julio Jones bursting onto the scene in 2008, perhaps the guy whose recruitment was as pivotal to Saban as Williams was to DeBoer. There was Amari Cooper in 2012, then Calvin Ridley in 2015, Jerry Jeudy, DeVonta Smith, and Henry Ruggs in 2017, and Jaylen Waddle in 2018.

Jeudy, Smith, and Ruggs took a while to get going, and really saw a breakout in 2018 when Tua Tagovailoa took over as QB full-time, though Smith did have one unforgettable moment in his freshman season.

The others quickly became stars, and it took little time for them to establish themselves as No. 1 receivers, aside from Waddle who spent his time at Alabama surrounded by the most talented wide receiver room in the history of the sport.

All of those guys went on to become first round picks. Cooper, Jeudy, and Smith were Biletnikoff winners. Coop was a Heisman finalist; DeVonta won it. Through the first three games of all of their careers, they're all chasing Hollywood.

Williams: 10 catches, 285 yards, 4 TD's
Waddle: 5 catches, 105 yards, 0 TD's
Jeudy: 1 catch, 8 yards, 0 TD's
Smith: 1 catch, 24 yards, 1 TD's
Ridley: 13 catches, 87 yards, 0 TD's
Cooper: 5 catches, 73 yards, 1 TD
Jones: 10 catches,107 yards, 2 TD's

Aside from Williams, only Julio was the clear-cut, No. 1 option the moment he stepped on the field for Alabama. Cooper and Ridley became the No. 1 options as the season wore on, but it took a little while for that to be clearly established.

Cooper broke Julio's record for most receiving yards as a freshman with 1000 in 2012. Ridley surpassed that number in 2015 with 1045 yards. On his current pace, Williams would surpass Ridley's freshman receiving record in the Iron Bowl, a thought that has to drive Auburn fans crazy as they left behind dreams of a "Freeze 5" and could be staring at the Freeze 5-or-more losses in a year that was supposed to feature marked improvement.

The last two times the freshman receiving record was broken, it was on national title winning teams. Cooper helped Alabama win the 2012 title, and Ridley led the way in receiving for the 2015 champion. Williams has already put himself among the elite company of the greats who came before him, but joining Cooper and Ridley in being the No. 1 option on a national championship winning team is the ultimate goal.