They say elephants don’t forget. Well, neither does Alabama. And if you were sitting anywhere near FirstBank Stadium on October 5th, you would remember too—that was the night Vanderbilt sent the college football world into cardiac arrest. The day the unranked Commodores stunned No. 1 Alabama 40–35. Ryan Williams balled his heart out, yet fell short. Fast forward to May 30th, and the tide—pun very much intended—is starting to roll back with a vengeance, and Ryan Williams? He’s got Jerry Rice wisdom echoing in his ear and blood in his eyes.

On May 30th, Alabama’s sophomore wideout, along with teammate Isaiah Horton, linked up with Super Bowl-winning coach Jon Gruden at the FFCA. And what went down? Nothing light. Gruden sat him down and hit him with straight gold: Jerry Rice-level gospel. Gruden didn’t sugarcoat a thing. He hit Williams with, “When I was calling plays in the NFL—you can’t tap out, man.” Then he started naming legends—Jerry Rice, Tim Brown, Irving Fryar—and dropped a masterclass about what separates elite receivers from the 4 season players who just flash and fade.

Jerry Rice’s longevity in the NFL is flat-out legendary—the kind of run that rewrote what durability and greatness mean at the wide receiver position. He played 20 seasons, from 1985 to 2004, and didn’t walk away until age 42. That’s unheard of in a league where most wideouts are out by their early 30s. But Rice? He was still out there torching DBs in his late 30s.

At 39, he dropped 83 catches for 1,139 yards and 9 touchdowns. A year later, at 40, he somehow upped it to 92 receptions for 1,211 yards and 7 scores. That’s WR1-type work when most players are already watching from the couch. He’s the only player with over 1,000 receiving yards in 14 different seasons and still holds the crown for all-time receptions, yards, and touchdowns. Straight up, the man was a walking record book.

What made it all crazier was how obsessed he was with the grind. Rice didn’t just play long—he worked harder than anybody in the game. His offseason workouts are still stuff of myth: hill sprints, full-body punishment, zero shortcuts. Teammates and young players tried training with him, but usually tapped out after one day—he’d literally run them into the dirt.

Jon Gruden wasn’t capping when he said Rice came into camp every year one pound lighter, even at 39.

Jon Gruden laid out his wisdom and secret to longevity: “So it’s the conditioning, the physical conditioning, and the mental toughness that you gotta have, man. You know what I mean? And it ain’t good enough. It’s never good enough. So when you get back there, make the strength coach your best friend.” The Bama receiver is still listed at 6 feet, 175 pounds, the same as his debut season last year. However, that’s likely to change by fall. It seems Jon Gruden’s subtle advice to make the strength and conditioning coach his best friend paid off, as Williams’ impressive offseason muscle gains clearly show he’s already taken that to heart.

All the pro league attention, interviews, and NIL endorsements are great. But Gruden added what truly matters. “Jerry Rice never missed a workout. Well, you know what I mean. Every year he reported to training camp, he was one pound lighter; when he was 37, 38, 39, his conditioning was insane. Guys would go train with them. They’d never go back again because he would run them into the freaking ground. But my point is, make sure you guys get yourselves ready to really roll, because that’s what makes the great pass offenses. It’s late in the fourth quarter, two-minute drills, guys aren’t tapped out on the sidelines,” he said.

And Williams? Didn’t flinch. “Yes, sir.”

Vandy Nightmare Recall!

Jon Gruden wasn’t just up there running his mouth. He saw what Ryan Williams did to DBs as a 17-year-old in college football—and he wanted to fan that flame. Let’s not act like Williams didn’t give Bama a shot in that Vanderbilt disaster. Man had 3 catches, 82 yards, and a 58-yard house call that almost snatched the game.

Let’s take it back to that October night. Vandy did the unthinkable. First win over Alabama since Ronald Reagan was president. Clock-chewed the Tide for over 42 minutes. Forced Milroe into a costly fumble and even intercepted him for a touchdown. Williams? He stayed in it. Made the biggest play of the game. But it wasn’t enough. Not that night. Gruden brought it up while flipping plays.

What happened in that Vandy game? Williams didn’t dodge. “They just played a better football game than us this game. We came out slow; they capitalized. They held the ball. They had their game plan, and they executed.”

Then came the question Gruden was dying to ask—what’s the message when Vandy comes to Tuscaloosa this year? “We don’t call them a revenge game,” Williams said cool and cold. “But we gon’ kill an ant with a sledgehammer.”

The only problem: Diego Pavia, Vandy’s QB. And Gruden gave him props. “They got a good quarterback out there. That guy can make plays.” Williams simply nodded in agreement and added, “They do.” And they aren’t wrong. Pavia was surgical that night—252 passing yards, 56 on the ground, 2 tuddies, and total control over that clock. The 6th-year QB was annoying in all the right ways.

Alabama went 9-4 in DeBoer’s first year. Respectable? Sure. But this isn’t Indiana. Bama doesn’t do moral victories. Williams knows it. The team knows it. Now, the 2025 schedule’s stacked—revenge games circled in thick red ink. And Williams is walking into every stadium with that “red eyes” energy. You embarrassed the Tide last year? Cool. Keep that same energy. Because on October 4th, Vanderbilt walks into Bryant-Denny. And this time, Alabama’s got a sophomore wideout with grown-man strength, Jerry Rice advice, and a sledgehammer in his hand.