Recent UVa commit Jae’Oyn Williams excited to play in the Commonwealth
It didn’t take long after Virginia extended an offer to 3-star Jae’Oyn Williams for him to decide that Charlottesville was the place for him. Just three days later on June 12, his birthday, Williams committed to the Hoos, captioning his announcement post on social media with, “staying home.”
Joining the Wahoos next season will truly be a homecoming for the Woodbridge, Virginia native. He’s spent his high school career in Baltimore at St. Frances Academy, with a brief stint at nearby Calvert Hall College High School his sophomore year. Williams said returning home to Virginia for college “means everything.”
“They were the first school to really give me a chance,” he said, speaking with our Jackson Hephner. “And for Coach Elliott to be at the University of Virginia, and that being my home state, it means the world to me.”
While Williams grew up less than 100 miles away from Grounds, his trip to Charlottesville for his official visit was his first time on Grounds. Williams said that he felt UVA’s family environment as soon as he stepped on Grounds citing it as a major reason for his commitment. Williams also got a chance to see UVA’s new football facility, the Hardie Center, which opened last summer.
“I loved it,” he said. “The weight room looked brand new. The new athletic facility, it looked great.”
Williams will join the Class of 2026 next year with a versatile skillset. Since starting the sport at the age of 4, Williams said he’s played “pretty much every position you can think of that’s not center,” and though he has often been listed as a quarterback, Williams won’t be locked into any one position at the collegiate level.
Williams has shown skill as a signal caller. Across five games last year for St. Frances, he went 35-for-55 (63.6%) with 447 yards, seven touchdowns and just one interception. On the ground, he rushed for 420 yards and six touchdowns on 34 carries across the same five-game span.
While time will tell where he ends up on the field for Virginia, he’ll have a chance to prove himself as a signal-caller.
“When I asked Coach Elliott, he said he would give me a shot at QB,” Williams said. “That’s all I need.”
After finishing up his upcoming senior season at St. Frances, Williams will join UVa in 2026 as the program hopes to continue its rebuild. With the recruiting class continuing to take shape around him, Williams said it “definitely means a lot” to join the program during its ascension, and hopes to bring success back home to Virginia.
