Who is Caleb Williams? In short, he’s the man who’s about to become the next quarterback of the Chicago Bears.
Williams is the consensus No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft, and is among the most highly-touted quarterback prospects in recent memory. Think Joe Burrow and Andrew Luck, that type of hype.
What makes him so intriguing? Williams does just about everything well. He earns the most praise for his elusiveness in the backfield and creativity as he keeps his eyes downfield to hunt for big plays. His ability to take a would-be sack and turn it into a monster gain has drawn comparisons to Patrick Mahomes. Of course, comps like that are incredibly unfair, and Williams isn’t just a schoolyard gunslinger. He’s shown the ability to make anticipatory throws in the regular rhythm of the offense. If nothing materializes, he can also run and leave his pursuers in the dust.
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Williams began his college career in 2021, at Oklahoma as Spencer Rattler’s backup. It didn’t take long for him to win the starting job as a freshman, however. On Oct. 9, partway through Oklahoma’s rivalry game against Texas, Williams got his chance and never looked back. Rattler struggled in the early goings, and the Sooners fell to a 28-7 deficit in the first quarter. So head coach Lincoln Riley put in Williams, and Williams took off– literally. He reeled off a 66-yard touchdown run on a 4th-and-1 play to cut the lead in half. From there he threw two more touchdowns and led the Sooners to an incredible 55-48 comeback win.
Including the crazy comeback, the Sooners went 6-2 with Williams leading the offense for the rest of the season.
When Riley left Oklahoma for USC, Williams followed him. The two flourished in Los Angeles, and Williams won the Heisman Trophy in 2022. Williams and the Trojans had championship aspirations last season, but they were largely held back by one of the worst defenses in the nation. Still, Williams led USC to 41.8 points per game, which ranked third in the country.
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If there’s one knock on Williams, it’s that he fumbled the ball at a higher rate in 2023 than he did at any other point in his career. At both Oklahoma and USC, however, Williams threw very few interceptions.
Over his entire three years in college, Williams played in 37 games. He completed 66.9% of his passes for 10,082 yards, 93 touchdowns and just 14 interceptions. Williams also gained 966 yards on the ground with 27 rushing touchdowns. He won the Heisman and was named Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Year and an All-American in 2022.