Rece Davis answers if Ryan Williams needs a change of scenery from Alabama

As a freshman in 2024, Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver Ryan Williams was a phenom. Expectations were massive going into 2025, but he quickly found himself suffering from a sophomore slump.

His production, or lack there of, came on on the College GameDay Podcast following the first round of the College Football Playoff. There, ESPN host Rece Davis explained that he thinks it’s not necessarily about the scenery in Alabama, but getting his confidence back.

“First of all, I don’t know the answer to the one,” Rece Davis said. “I know that they’re going to try not to have him have a change of scenery. Because I think there’s a feeling that, change some fundamental things, do some different kind of work that he can realize his vast potential. Sort of regain what he had last year.”

Part of what made Ryan Williams a phenom in 2024 was his age, thriving at just 17 years old. That also means he’s still young and isn’t a finished product as a wide receiver. Rece Davis knows that, and his concern is that in his development, he’s developed a case of the yips.

“Here’s what he looks like to me. He looks a little bit like Chuck Knoblauch. Remember when Chuck Knoblauch, who was a great player, couldn’t throw the ball to first base. He’d get a ground ball, he’d field it, and just like ugh. Even when they threw [Williams] that swing pass late to try to keep the clock moving and Oklahoma’s using the timeouts,” Davis said. “He bobbled that. So, to me, this is a confidence and a pressing and a little bit in the head deal. It’s not a physical program. It’s not a lack of effort.”

This season, Ryan Williams has 43 receptions for 636 yards and four touchdowns. They’re not bad stats by any means, but they’re all also down from his freshman season. However, he leads the nation in dropped passes. He’s up to 13 drops in 2025, after dropping just four passes in 2024.

Williams had broken out nationally at the Georgia game in 2024. With six receptions for 177 yards and a highlight reel touchdown, that was no surprise. Since then, however, he has only surpassed 100 receiving yards in a game once. He has just one touchdown reception in Alabama’s last seven games.

“It’s one of those things where you’ve had some drops. Now you’re thinking about drops. The harder you try, the worse it gets. That’s particularly true in baseball. I think, in this case, that may be true. The harder you try, the worse it gets. He can still be a threat in the Rose Bowl against Indiana, in my judgement, because he’s so talented. But it’s one of those things, like when you’re in a hitting slump — another baseball analogy. If you can just see one go through. You’re in a shooting slump in basketball. If you can just make a couple of layups. Just see it go through the net a couple of times,” Davis said.

“I think that’s what he needs. He needs to see it go through the net a couple of times. See a couple of hits to the outfield, make a couple of catches. If he can do that, I think he’ll be fine.”

Alabama will need Ryan Williams to figure things out quickly. The Crimson Tide are getting ready for a massive test against Indiana in the Rose Bowl.

“But I do think there is a, and it’s pretty obvious watching him… It just looks like a loss of confidence right now to me. One of those issues where he’s pressing,” Davis said. “That’s what it looks like anyway.”