During my 20 years of life, I have likely consumed an ungodly amount of football — it genuinely pains me to think of just how many hours I have wasted away in front of a TV watching what was an ultimately meaningless game between two teams that I did not care about in the slightest.
Thus, seeing as I have this minor addiction to football, I feel more than confident in saying that I have indeed witnessed and experienced a fair share of some of the game’s most “legendary moments.” I distinctly remember watching Malcolm Butler’s Super Bowl-clinching interception on the goal line; I can easily recall where on the couch I was sitting when Tua Tagavoila hoisted up a prayer in overtime to win the University of Alabama Crimson Tide the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship; and I will always cherish my memory of watching (and subsequently celebrating) the University of Notre Dame’s immortal goal line stand against Stanford University in 2012.
However, despite this treasure trove of unforgettable moments that I have witnessed, I would actually venture to say that this past weekend, I saw what was potentially the greatest football play of all time: Ryan Williams’ incredible game-winning 75-yard touchdown catch. However, before I dive into the greatness of this singular play, I feel it necessary to first set the scene.
Thus, in doing so, let me begin by saying this past weekend featured one of the most anticipated college football games ever: a showdown between the fourth-ranked Crimson Tide and the second-ranked University of Georgia Bulldogs. The amount of hype that surrounded this game can simply not be overstated, as it was slated to be a primetime top-five matchup full of future NFL players, inter-team hostility and general chaos played out in one of the wildest and loudest environments in all of college football: Alabama’s Bryant-Denny Stadium.
And, to put it mildly, the game indeed lived up to its billing and then some. Bryant-Denny Stadium was, as expected, simply rocking, and the Crimson Tide quickly took advantage of all its energy to stun both the Bulldogs and the country by jumping out to a mammoth 30-7 lead on the back of a glut of huge plays (a couple of timely interceptions, some dynamic runs and throws by junior quarterback Jalen Milroe and a rare safety, to name a few). Nevertheless, the Bulldogs were able to weather this gut punch of a first half and mount what was a comeback for the ages, slowly clawing their way back into the game via some stellar defense and long touchdown drives. This shocking journey back from the dead of the Bulldogs’ would eventually culminate in a stunning, dagger-like 67-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Carson Beck to junior receiver Dillion Bell that gave Georgia their first lead of the game (34-33) with only 2:31 left to go in the game.
Thus, when the Crimson Tide walked out onto their field after having blown a massive lead at home, it seemed like everything was hopeless, all their momentum had evaporated into the warm night air in an instant. In short, Bryant-Denny Stadium was dead silent; every Alabama player simply looked dejected; and one simply felt the overwhelming confidence that Georgia was now playing with.
Yet, despite all this standing in the way of a Crimson Tide victory, a miracle occurred as Milroe lofted a deep pass into the night sky toward freshman wide receiver Ryan Williams on the first play of Alabama’s potential response drive. As the ball reached Williams’ hands on the right sideline, he not only pulled off one of the most acrobatic catches I have ever seen (effectively freezing and reversing his spinning body in mid-air to adjust himself to the underthrown and slightly inaccurate pass), but he likewise managed to string together some of the most athletic ball carrier moves I have ever seen (from a crazy dead-leg spin move to a sudden, Olympian-level burst of acceleration) after the catch in order to find the endzone and put the Crimson Tide back on top in the dying moments of one of the biggest games the sport has ever seen.
While no written description can ever adequately describe the athletic insanity that Williams pulled off during his 75-yard reception, what makes this play so truly insane is the fact that Williams is only 17 years old and in his first season of college football. All of the inhuman body control, speed and poise in the face of unfathomable levels of pressure that he displayed was done at an age when most people are just struggling to stay awake during their highschool class — something Williams would be doing right now if he had not exited high school a year early in order to play for the Crimson Tide. To put just how young he is into perspective, Williams was only nine when Trump was elected, 10 when “Fortnite” came out and three when Instagram was founded.
To be sure, all of this might just be hyperbolic conjecture fueled by a strong sense of recency bias, yet I cannot help but feel that I witnessed something abnormally special when Williams stole victory from the rabid jaws of the Georgia Bulldogs. It simply is not every day, or rather every football game, that one witnesses a 17-year-old true-freshman step up on primetime national television to pull off one of the clutchest and most athletic plays to win his team a game against the second-best team in the country whose roster is full of future NFL players.
