In 2022, Washington, D.C. native and former University of Oklahoma quarterback Caleb Williams left the Sooners program, along with the team’s former head coach, Lincoln Riley.
The two left Norman, Oklahoma, for Southern California, looking to revive the USC program.
USC – which posted a 4-8 record the year before Williams and Riley got there – has only lost two games in the last two years.
In 19 games with the Trojans, Williams has 76 touchdowns (four per game) and only seven turnovers (0.4 per game). That’s an 11/1 touchdown-to-turnover ratio.
That is utter insanity.
Last season, Williams won the Heisman Trophy, yet this year he’s managed to play even better. Through five games in 2023, he has thrown for 21 touchdowns and added three more on the ground. He has thrown just one interception and not lost a fumble.
What makes Williams so special is his ability to play ultra-aggressively while also protecting the football. He is averaging 14 adjusted yards per attempt, which would break the college football record (13.6 by Grayson McCall at Coastal Carolina in 2021).
Williams is a human highlight reel. Turn on any USC game and you will see him scrambling around and throwing side-arm, or heaving a perfect pass 60 plus yards downfield.
There seems to be nothing he can’t do.
Williams’ draft hype has been similar to players such as Andrew Luck, Ricky Williams and Peyton Manning. Every NFL mock draft board has him at number one.
ESPN anchor and former Detroit Lions quarterback Dan Orlovsky called Williams a mix between Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson.
That does not mean that there are no concerns about his NFL potential. He is undersized for the NFL QB position (6-1) and some analysts believe he holds onto the ball too long, arguing that this tendency will result in sacks at the NFL level.
But for now, he has the pleasure of running an offense coached by Riley, a quarterback guru who has already helped develop Jalen Hurts, Kyler Murray and Baker Mayfield.
While no prospect is “perfect,” Williams may be the closest to perfection that college football has ever seen.
