Cole Cubelic tabs Ryan Williams as the biggest key for Alabama run in College Football Playoff

Alabama wound up not sweating as much on Selection Sunday, earning the nine-seed in the College Football Playoff. The journey to a national championship begins in Norman, getting a rematch vs. Oklahoma. Kalen DeBoer saw his team struggle down the stretch and another gear is needed in order to make some kind of run.

ESPN’s Cole Cubelic has identified wide receiver Ryan Williams as a difference maker for Alabama. We saw him thrive early against Georgia in the SEC Championship game before the offense faded in the second half. Cubelic thinks if the Tide is going to do anything, No. 2 needs to be a factor.

“I think the biggest thing they have to have, Josh,” Cubelic began on Josh Pate’s College Football Show. “If we’re talking about Bama, making a run to the national title game, you better have first-half-of-the-SEC-Championship-Game Ryan Williams.  Because let’s be real. That makes them very different. Out of all the things that they’ve done, been, not been, complaints that they’ve had this season, guys that have played great, guys that have fallen off, guys that have been injured, in and out of the lineup — if they have that Ryan Williams.”

Williams produced a couple of explosives for Alabama, catching two passes for 33 yards. Offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb even dialed up a run play for the wide receiver, resulting in five yards. Not the flashiest numbers but enough to make you notice someone who has had a quiet season.

Getting Williams going does more than just get results for him. Cubelic says they can shift Germie Bernard into a more traditional spot. Bernard has featured as the team’s best wide receiver and needs to evolve into that role for the offense to be successful.

“Keep in mind, who has been their utility player this year?” Cubelic asked. “It’s been Germie Bernard. In the backfield, lined up as a Y as a tight end sometimes, the move guy, he’s throwing passes, he’s what they use for their gadget plays sometimes. Imagine letting Germie Bernard just being Germie Bernard and Ryan Williams can, sort of, be your move, utility-type guy. Your Swiss Army Knife with that kind of explosive speed and the capability that he brings.”

Unfortunately, the Oklahoma defense is one of the best in the nation. If Alabama gets past them, the Indiana Hoosiers are waiting on the other side in Pasadena in the Rose Bowl. Williams is going to have difficult matchups, no matter how far Alabama goes in the next month.