Alabama WR Receiving Guidance From Former Alabama, NFL Great

TUSCALOOSA. Ala. - Former Atlanta Falcons legend and Alabama wide receiver Julio Jones still has his fingerprints on the Alabama football program, catalyzing the Nick Saban dynasty with his commitment to the Crimson Tide in 2007. Jones ended his Alabama career with 179 receptions for 2,653 yards and 15 touchdowns. The Atlanta Falcons drafted him with the fourth overall pick in the 2011 NFL draft.

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Jones took the NFL world by storm and became one of the greatest wide receivers ever to play the game, spending 10 seasons with the Atlanta Falcons before spending his final three with the Tennessee Titans, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and the Philadelphia Eagles. Jones announced his retirement from the NFL this past April, retiring with 914 receptions, 13,703 receiving yards, and 66 touchdowns. He also added 163 yards rushing during his 13-year career.

Jones helped Alabama secure its first national championship of the Nick Saban era and is still helping the program by talking to the Crimson Tide's receiving corps, namely sophomore wide receiver Ryan Williams.

"We were just talking about a couple of basic things just to help out in routes and when the ball is in the air," Williams said on Tuesday. "Nothing too serious. [We spoke] last year, a couple of times before then."

Williams said that he's watched Jones "his whole life," and loves having the luxury of speaking with the future Hall of Fame wide receiver from Foley, Alabama, the same zip code as Ryan Williams (251). Both players, being from Alabama, added to the trust factor between the two, and only added to the comparisons between the two when Williams signed with Alabama.

"It's a blessing to be put in that conversation just because, honestly, it just means a lot," Williams said. "All of the work that I've been doing up until this point has paid off to a degree. But I still have to put the work in to have the outcome or a better outcome than he had."

Williams may be smaller than Jones (by about 40 pounds), but he's trying to incorporate some of Jones's game into his own.

"Definitely his physicality and mentality on each individual play," Williams said. "He plays like it's his last play every play, and you can definitely tell he loves football. Just continue to have the attitude of gratitude day in and day out. You just see it in the film, and you can't wipe that away. When you turn on his tape, you can't miss it."

Williams, in his sophomore season at Alabama, has caught 36 passes for 528 yards and four touchdowns with the Crimson Tide. In Jones's sophomore season, he caught 43 passes for 596 yards and four touchdowns.

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Wyatt Fulton is the Tide 100.9 DME and Brand Manager, primarily covering Alabama Crimson Tide football and men's basketball. For more Crimson Tide coverage, follow Wyatt on X (Formerly known as Twitter) at @FultonW_.