In this installment of the recruiting notebook, we meet a dynamic, top 50 recruit who brings incredible athleticism and speed to Miami’s secondary: S Avantae Williams.

Bio

I know this is kind of cheating, but since I just wrote a new Welcome to the U piece for Williams with his commitment having come moments ago, I’m just gonna link that here for your bio needs.

Recruiting Ranking

On the 247sports composite, Williams is a 4-star prospect, the #2 S nationally in this class, #7 in the State of Florida, and #44 recruit overall. Elite. Elite. Elite.

Williams committed to Miami over Florida, with additional offers from Oregon, Alabama, Georgia, and Florida State from a robust list of 27 offers.

As a Player

As listed above, Williams is elite as it gets at Safety. He combines great speed with physical play to make his presence felt all over the field.

At 5’11” 170lbs, Williams has room to add some weight. But, seeing as his incredible athleticism and speed are the foundation for his game (which, again, is ELITE), you wouldn’t want him to get too big and mitigate that. Somewhere in the 185-190lb range is plenty big enough for Williams.

Although he’s not the biggest player in the secondary, Williams is a force at the point of contact. Simple physics tells use force is mass times acceleration (f = ma) and while Williams’s mass isn’t the biggest, his acceleration (speed) MORE than makes up for that difference.

Make no mistake about it: Williams is FAST. You can see that readily in his kick and punt returns, and also with the insane amount of ground he covers from his safety position. Williams is a prototypical “centerfield” Safety, who can sit at 20-25 yards and get from sideline to sideline over the top of any vertical throw the opposing offense could attempt.

With modest height, Williams has to rely on his athleticism when covering larger players. So teams could try to gain mismatches against him in the passing game with 6’4”+ receivers or tight ends down the field.

Also, Williams plays physically at the point of contact with a receiver or running back, but larger players (think AJ Dillon, who I know is a rare specimen, but you get my drift) could present problems for Williams, as well.

Strengths

• Speed
• Athleticism
• Coverage ability (man and zone)
• Ball skills

Weaknesses

• Average height
• Average build
• Run support

2020 Outlook

Miami has plenty of talent at Safety, but Williams is a rare talent with rare speed and skills. Whether it’s on special teams, base defense, sub packages, or something else, it’s a near certainty that a player of this caliber will be on the field in 2020.

Chances for a Redshirt: 1/10

I leave open the possibility of a redshirt. Becasue these things happen. But Williams to Miami is a homerun and this staff would be eager to see what Williams could add to the team on the field early and often in his Miami career.

That’s it for this installment of the Recruiting Notebook.

Go Canes