Every Wednesday this spring, SI Sooners examines one key player’s performance from Oklahoma’s Red/White Game. Today: Quarterback Caleb Williams.
There’s no pressure on Caleb Williams to play right away.
Spencer Rattler is a star — arguably the best quarterback in college football and possibly the No. 1 overall draft pick next spring.
But what Oklahoma’s wunderkind freshman showed Lincoln Riley in the Sooners’ spring game is clear: he’s ready right now, if necessary.
The Breakdown
Yes, Williams should be finishing his final semester of high school this spring instead of playing big-time college football. But don’t forget: COVID cost him his senior year of high school football, too.
Yet Williams showed during the Red/White Game that he’s capable of making the jump from high school to college. His transition, through hard work and preparation, appears almost easy.
The question becomes how much does Williams play in 2021? If the Sooners roll through their non-conference schedule, Williams figures to get backup snaps in each game. They’ll blow out some Big 12 teams, too.
Does Riley move forward on the standard premise of keeping Williams at four games or less to preserve his redshirt, like he did two years ago with Rattler? Or does he present Rattler’s understudy as often as possible with the realization that Williams wants to be in the NFL after playing three years in college?
Literally anything could happen over the next 6-36 months. But Riley and Sooner Nation can rest easy knowing Caleb Williams is ready whenever he’s called.
