Alex Williams, the 6-foot-5, 210-pound three-star defensive end/linebacker from Florida A&M University High School in Tallahassee, Fla., continues to focus on Arkansas and Ole Miss.
“I’ve talked to my family about it a lot and we really felt that these two were the best fit for me,” Williams said. “Both their coaches came after me real hard and showed me that they really want me.”
Williams is the younger brother of Boo Williams, who played wide receiver for the Razorbacks and tight end for the New Orleans Saints. Ironically, the coach that he played for at Arkansas (Houston Nutt) is now at Ole Miss. So is Williams’ older brother rooting for his alma mater or his old coaches?
“He won’t say,” Williams said. “He’s given me some good advice and told me some great things about Arkansas, but also told me some great things about coach Nutt and his staff. He just doesn’t want it to seem like I chose a school because of him.”
Williams had a chance to visit Fayetteville on Jan. 9 and says that Arkansas now leads slightly. “They are number one because I’ve already visited them,” he said. “Plus, they are recruiting me hard for basketball too and that’s important to me. I definitely plan on playing basketball wherever I go and the Arkansas basketball coaches have been talking to me a lot.”
He plays shooting guard and small forward and averages about 19 points and 13 rebounds per game. “They (the Arkansas basketball coaches) told me that I’d have a real chance to earn some playing time,” he said. “They’ve seen me play and they said they liked what they saw.”
Williams was also very impressed with the basketball facilities at Arkansas. “Their facilities are great,” he said. “They were actually modeled after the Chicago Bulls facilities, so you know they’ve got to be good.
“We went to their basketball game during the visit and it was crazy,” he said. “The place was packed and the crowd was real loud. It gave me a good idea of what it would be like to play there.
“The fans are amazing and they like football even more so that would be incredible to play there,” Williams said. “I heard that people come to see them practice everyday.
“The stadium is huge and the facilities were great too,” he said. “I’m not used to facilities like that. The weight room is like 110-yards long and they’ve got an indoor practice field and two outdoor fields.”
Another thing that stood out about the Razorbacks was the players on the team. “They were all great,” Williams said. “They treated me like I was already part of the team and made me feel at home. I was very comfortable there.”
Williams will be taking his second and final visit to Ole Miss on Jan. 24. “I love how well Ole Miss did this season,” he said. “They beat Florida and nobody else can say that. To me that’s like they had a national championship season.
“Plus, they are losing a couple guys on defense, so I feel like I’d be able to help out,” he said.
“My brother talked to me a lot about coach Nutt and how the staff really cares about the players and develop relationships with their players,” Willaims said. “They have father-son type relationships and that’s what I like to have with my coaches. I really think they have some of the best coaches in the country.”
Williams says he also has offers from Memphis, Michigan, Iowa, East Carolina, Florida International, Florida Atlantic and Florida A&M. At one point Williams was thinking of visiting Michigan but says they are no longer on his short list. And past leader Florida State never offered.
“It’s really only about Arkansas and Ole Miss right now,” he said. “I just wasn’t feeling it for Michigan and we just decided not to take the visit.”
Williams says he’ll make his announcement on signing day. “I may let the coaches know first,” he said. “But I’ll wait until signing day to tell everyone else.”
Scout.com’s No. 78 defensive end finished his senior season with approximately 150 total tackles and an impressive 19 sacks.
He reports a 2.7 core GPA and an 900 SAT and says he’s now fully qualified.