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Ohio State Buckeyes

Ohio State wide receiver Jameson Williams to transfer to Alabama

Joey Kaufman
Buckeye Xtra

Wide receiver Jameson Williams will leave Ohio State for another national championship contender.

In a tweet posted on Monday morning, he announced a transfer to Alabama.

The decision to join the Crimson Tide, which defeated the Buckeyes in the College Football Playoff championship game in January, was unveiled only five days after Williams had entered the NCAA’s transfer portal.

It was anticipated Williams was going to slide down the Buckeyes’ depth chart in 2021, despite starting the final six games of last season, including both Playoff matchups.

Garrett Wilson has been slated for a move to outside receiver after lining up in the slot, displacing Williams, who had been starting opposite Chris Olave. Rising sophomore Jaxon Smith-Njigba is in line to take Wilson’s inside spot.

Ohio State Buckeyes wide receiver Jameson Williams (6) reels in a pass while defended by Maryland Terrapins defensive back Lavonte Gater (37) during the first half of Saturday's NCAA football game at Ohio Stadium in Columbus on November 9, 2019. [Barbara J. Perenic/Dispatch]

While Olave and Wilson have remained with the Buckeyes, the Crimson Tide lost a lot of talent from last season's prolific offense. That included its top wide receivers in Heisman Trophy winner DeVonta Smith and Jaylen Waddle, leaving the potential for more playing time to be up for grabs.

Williams, a 6-foot-2 target, will be eligible to play immediately at Alabama in the fall after the NCAA approved new transfer rules last month.

Under the newly adopted legislation, players are permitted to transfer once as undergraduates without having to sit out a season.

They must only inform schools of an intention to transfer by May 1, though the deadline is extended to July 1 this year.

The top returning wide receiver for the Crimson Tide is John Metchie III, who was their second-leading receiver, and Slade Bolden, who started for much of the season while Waddle was out with an ankle injury, is also back.

Alabama previously offered Williams a scholarship when he was a top-100 prospect from St. Louis in the 2019 recruiting class.

As a sophomore last season, Williams caught nine passes for 154 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

In the title game against Alabama, he snagged a 14-yard pass from quarterback Justin Fields on the first play of a scoring drive early in the second quarter.

Williams had his biggest performance in the team’s semifinal victory over Clemson, catching three passes for 62 yards, including a 45-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter as the Buckeyes poured on points in the 49-28 rout.

He becomes the second wide receiver from last season's team to transfer from Ohio State.

The other was Mookie Cooper, who announced a transfer to Missouri, another Southeastern Conference team, in January.  

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