Well, the Alabama Crimson Tide’s boat sank in the 2024 season. Yes, Kalen DeBoer failed to save himself and the program from the post-Nick Saban exit effect. However, there is one player who was able to save himself from any bad juju. Guess who was that lucky chap? It was none other than Alabama’s wide receiver Ryan Williams. He had the best game of his debut season against Georgia. And from that, Williams did reap some sweet fruits.

His NIL valuation nearly got doubled. However, the $2.3 million Williams is yet to hit the ‘SETTLE’ button. He must have been having some FOMO after seeing Ohio State’s Jeremiah Smith. 

Ryan Williams’ NIL portfolio grows stronger 

Walking into the 2024 season, the 17-year-old had an NIL valuation of $768,000. However, Bama’s 41-34 victory over Georgia Bulldogs on September 29 changed the game for Williams. After all, the young chap came with the winning touchdown. And BOOM! His NIL valuation went straight up to $1.5 million. However, currently, he boasts $2.3 million. Even though brand deals often get lost in the shuffle of the NIL collectives, Williams had secured some heavy-weight partnerships with brands like Uber Eats and Hollister. So, in a way, he had taken care of the relationship-building that comes with the NIL landscape. That’s how Williams is keeping his NIL journey intact. The recent break came with Nintendo and Epic Games.

On February 6, Alabama defensive back, Jaylen Mbakwe, posted a reel with his fellow mate Williams. The caption of the post read, “When running Fortnite on Nintendo Switch, you know we locked in #EpicPartner #NintendoPartner @fortnite.” In the video, Mbakwe asked Willaims, “What are you playing the whole time, bruh?” “I’m playing a game, bruh,” replied the WR. The DB then made fun of Williams saying, “You gonna d-e anyway,” while his mate remained glued to the mobile screen. 

It was pretty evident that they had the best time playing the game. While they were enjoying the game, it came off as a sign that the Williams along with Mbakwe had bagged the deal with Epic Games, valued at $22.5 billion. However, before Williams, it was Ohio State’s WR Smith who fell on the video game publisher’s radar. 

How Jeremiah Smith’s NIL glory turned awry

Ryan Day’s star WR Smith came up with an array of post-season awards. Not to forget his Freshman All-American by the Football Writers Association of America award. Smith being Williams’ competitor, came off as a big threat as he climbed the NIL radar holding a valuation of $3.7 million. So, living Smith’s life must have been Williams’ dream. Did you know that the Buckeyes WR too signed an NIL deal with Epic Games? 

On January 14, Day’s WR shared a video of him playing Epic Games’ popular battle royal title, Fortnite on a Nintendo Switch. The caption read, “Practice is done, time for some Fortnite on my Nintendo Switch, #EpicPartner #NintendoPartner.” CFB on Fox re-shared Smith’s Instagram video and captioned it as “This Jeremiah Smith NIL deal is sick.” Unfortunately, this deal landed the young chap in the hot seat.

The fans did not care whether there had been an NFL buzz for the player or not in his first season in college football. They did not inch back while bashing the WR for his acting skills. Jeremiah Smith got trolled badly as comments like “At least take some acting classes,” “You can see he has very little on-screen personality,” started to pour in. Praying Ryan Williams’ fate doesn’t take the same turn as Jeremiah Smith’s.