Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

Alabama Football Star Guarantees Big Win In 2025

Originally posted on The Spun | By Andrew Gould | Last updated Jun 3, 2025 2:26 PM ET

Alabama wide receiver Ryan Williams vowed to avoid a repeat of last year's embarrassing SEC loss.

Last October, Vanderbilt shocked the world with a 40-35 upset over Alabama. The Crimson Tide entered the game ranked first in the AP poll following a monumental win over Georgia before falling to the Commodores for the first time in 40 years.

During a recent interview with Jon Gruden, Williams promised to make amends when Alabama hosts Vanderbilt this season.

"Going into this game, we don't call them revenge games. We're going to kill an ant with a sledgehammer this year," Williams said. "Every game we fell short last year, we definitely got red eyes going into them."

Williams scored a 58-yard touchdown reception at Vanderbilt last year and added a two-yard rushing touchdown late in the fourth quarter. Yet the Commodores forced two turnovers and dominated time of possession, holding the football for 42 of 60 minutes.

"They just played a better football game than us that game," Williams told Gruden. "We came out slow, and they capitalized. They held the ball, they had their game plan, and they executed it."

Vanderbilt went all of 2023 without an SEC victory and had never defeated a top-five team in program history before upending Alabama. Meanwhile, the shortcoming marked the first of four Crimson Tide losses during Kalen DeBoer's first season replacing Nick Saban as head coach.

Two years after getting stunned by Vanderbilt, Alabama fell to Tennessee at Neyland Stadium. The prestigious program appeared to right the ship before suffering a 24-3 loss at Oklahoma on Nov. 23.

A year after controversially making the College Football Playoff over Florida State, Alabama narrowly missed the 12-team cut. Jalen Milroe ended his collegiate career by relinquishing three turnovers in a Reliaquest Bowl loss to Michigan.

Williams, who registered 865 yards and eight touchdowns as a true freshman, will be pivotal to the Crimson Tide's redemption plans in 2025. They have multiple chances for payback.

After facing Vanderbilt on Oct. 4, Alabama hosts Tennessee on Oct. 18 and Oklahoma on Nov. 15.

This article first appeared on The Spun and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: