TAMPA, Fla. - Ryan Coleman-Williams spent his sophomore season at Alabama flashing the kind of talent that made him one of college football’s most electric names. But the year also came with a problem that kept showing up in plain sight: drops.
The issue showed up in the numbers, too. Coleman-Williams’ drop rate rose to 16.9 percent last season, one of the highest marks among qualifying FBS receivers, after sitting at 12.7 percent as a freshman.
Even with the inconsistency, he still finished second on the team with 49 catches for 689 yards. But the big-play burst that defined his freshman breakout - including a 177-yard game against then-No.
2 Georgia - was tougher to find. His touchdown total also dipped, from eight to four, and the conversation followed him into the offseason after he dropped a pass during Ty Simpson’s pro day in March.
At SEC Media Days on Wednesday, Coleman-Williams faced the topic head-on.
"You gotta take accountability of it," Coleman-Williams said.
He said he has been working through what he called "PRPs," reps built to improve his focus on tracking and securing the ball. He also described a mental adjustment, one centered on getting the basics right before thinking about the extra damage after the catch.
"Making the catch first and handling the rest later," Coleman-Williams said.
That’s a notable shift for a player whose game has long been built around what he does once the ball is in his hands. Coleman-Williams said the issue has never been his ability.
"I know the playmaking ability, it's been there my entire life," Coleman-Williams said.
There’s also a new voice helping shape the room. Alabama hired Derrick Nix as its new receivers coach this offseason after JaMarcus Shepherd left to become head coach at Oregon State. Coleman-Williams said the focus this spring and summer has been less about finding one magic fix and more about stacking better habits every day.
"Taking the things I could've done better in my sophomore year and building the best plan for myself going into this year," Coleman-Williams said. "Just trying to replicate it day in and day out."
He also said he’s trying to shut out the outside chatter, something that comes with the territory at Alabama.
"Whenever it comes to noise or anything external, you have to take it with a grain of salt," Coleman-Williams said. "Praise and blame, it's all the same. So you just focus on the people that matter most to you."
The opportunity ahead is bigger, too. Alabama lost two of its top returning targets from last season in Issiah Horton and Germie Bernard, which opens the door for Coleman-Williams to take on a larger role. Whether that turns into the kind of bounce-back season Alabama needs may come down to the same point he kept returning to Wednesday: catch the ball first.
Fall camp opens in the coming weeks, and the Sept. 5 opener against East Carolina will be the first real chance to see whether the offseason work has changed the story.
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