By Sam Merendino
Ohio State and Alabama are used to possessing a surplus of talent at the WR position. Recently, Ohio natives have had the pleasure of watching players such as Marvin Harrison Jr., Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Chris Olave, and Garrett Wilson don the scarlet and gray every Saturday, and Alabama has seen just as much talent come through Tuscaloosa. The Crimson Tide have enjoyed the services of players like Jameson Williams, Jaylen Waddle, Jerry Jeudy, and 2020 Heisman Trophy winner DeVonta Smith. However, both teams currently have a player who could be better than every receiver that was just named.
Ryan Williams and Jeremiah Smith have been running roughshod over every DB that has lined up across from them this season, and both players look like they’re just getting started. Whether it’s been with exquisite route running, breakaway speed, or snagging 50/50 balls over dumbfounded defenders, they’ve both been unstoppable through the first five weeks of the season.
Ryan Williams: 17-year-old Phenom
Anyone who has watched even five seconds of Alabama football this season has heard it a million times: Ryan Williams is 17 years old. Every announcer that has called a Crimson Tide game so far this season has made sure to mention it whenever possible. While it has become something of an annoying meme among CFB fans, there’s a reason the talking heads keep talking about it. Ryan Williams should still be playing high school football and finding a date for his senior homecoming, but instead he’s making fools out of Division 1 FBS cornerbacks.
The most shocking part of all of this is that he appears to be the Tide’s go-to receiver. When they needed a big play trailing late against Georgia this past weekend, Jalen Milroe dropped back and launched a bomb to Williams, who made the catch and proceeded to spin out two Georgia defenders so badly that they crashed into each other, before galloping to the end zone to give Alabama the lead for good. While he’s not old enough to vote in the upcoming election, he’s apparently old enough to dunk on the best defenses college football has to offer.
ABSOLUTE SCENES IN TUSCALOOSA!!!
RYAN WILLIAMS WITH A 75-YARD TD TO RETAKE THE LEAD! pic.twitter.com/pvc9ML7E7G
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 29, 2024
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On the season, Williams has reeled in 16 catches for 462 yards and five TDs. the next closest Alabama receiver is Germie Bernard, who has 150 yards on the season, and Williams’ 462 yards are more than the next five Tide receivers combined. He’s also been responsible for five receiving scores, which is as many as the rest of the team.
The last true freshman to hit 1000 yards in a season for the Crimson Tide was Amari Cooper in 2012, when he landed right on that number. He also set the record for receiving TDs by a freshman with 11, and Williams is on pace to smash both of those numbers this season.
Jeremiah Smith is Exceeding His Lofty Expectations
Upon being informed that Jeremiah Smith had signed his letter of intent and would officially be enrolling at Ohio State in the spring, head coach Ryan Day nearly collapsed at the podium of the press conference he was holding. The nation’s number one overall prospect had had a tumultuous recruiting cycle that saw him flirt with many big name schools before ultimately choosing the Buckeyes. Overcome with relief, Day knew then what we all know now: Jeremiah Smith could flat-out play.
Ohio State head coach Ryan Day was at the podium when he received word that #1 Wide Receiver Jeremiah Smith made his commitment to Ohio State official today..
This was his reaction 😂 pic.twitter.com/vGk8S55Bna
— College Football Overtime (@CFB_Overtime) December 20, 2023
On a team with a projected first-round pick already at WR in Emeka Egbuka, Smith has emerged as perhaps the Buckeyes’ most explosive threat in the passing game. He leads the team in both receiving yards (364) and TDs (five). Like Williams, Smith has as many receiving TDs as the rest of his teammates put together. He’s made numerous highlight reel catches along the way, including an utterly ridiculous pair of catches this past weekend against Michigan State.
For his first, he outleaped two corners to nab a lofted pass along the sideline from QB Will Howard with just one hand, and for his second, he upped the ante further. Just two plays later, and with backup signal caller Devin Brown in the game for the Buckeyes on a third and 10 from the 17 yard line, the Spartans sent the house on a blitz. Brown faded to his right and fired a dart up the sideline to Smith, who had beaten his man in one-on-one coverage. Smith proceeded to pluck the ball out of the air using one rangy right hand and waltzed into the end zone, putting an end to the Spartans’ hopes of an upset bid.
TWO UNBELIEVEABLE ONE-HANDED CATCHES BY JEREMIAH SMITH 🤯
THEY CAN'T GUARD HIM 👀 pic.twitter.com/vGUUs6rn41
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) September 29, 2024
Ryan Williams and Jeremiah Smith will undoubtedly be compared throughout their entire college careers. Both will likely go on to have long and successful careers at the next level as well. But for now, their success so early on is almost unprecedented in the sport of college football, and we should all be looking forward to watching them grow.
