Derek Williams talks UT commitment, upcoming visit plans
Elite safety Derek Williams was a bit of a surprise pledge for the Texas Longhorns when he made an early call to give Texas a commitment way back on June 27, following a UT official visit. The Rivals100 member out of Louisiana still feels good about his decision, but there’s still work to be done by Texas in this one. Williams still wants to take some other visits, and already has one in the books, he tells Orangebloods.com.
“I’ve got one set up to Bama October 7,” Williams said. “I want to see Miami for sure. Texas A&M and LSU too.”
Williams, out of New Iberia (LA) Westgate, says he still feels really good about his Texas commitment but he wants to enjoy the recruiting process, see some other campuses and compare those to what he saw in Austin in June.
“I’m 100 percent locked in right now,” Williams said.
The nation’s No. 2-ranked safety prospect, Williams said he’s anxious to watch the Texas team this fall to see how the Longhorns fare in Steve Sarkisian’s second year in Austin. He’s also hoping to get back to the UT campus for a couple games, but is still trying to work out those travel plans.
Looking back at his decision to commit to Texas, Williams said it was a combination of factors that made him want to go forward with an early decision. He likes the relationship he’s built with Texas safeties coach Blake Gideon, who was a four-year starter at safety for Texas, and said the UT staff has been aggressively recruiting him for the better part of two years.
“They had been big on my recruiting since my sophomore year,” Williams said. “And coach Gideon, he’s a pretty cool guy. He keeps in touch with me all the time. He wants to make me better than him, help me reach my goals.”
As he evaluates other programs, Williams says a big part of his assessment will be the schools’ academic reputation. He wants to study mechanical engineering and will look at each school’s degree plan in that field.
On the field, Williams and his Westgate teammates kick off the season next Friday. He’s hoping to play well enough to continue to climb the recruiting rankings while also rounding out his game on the field and as a leader.
“I want to develop into the number one safety,” Williams said. “We have a lot of young guys on our team this year, so I’ll be communicating with them. Then I want to improve on my coverage, my man coverage.
“My strengths are that I like hitting. That’s my main strength probably. That and studying the guys we play before we play them, watching film.”
A versatile defender at 6-1 and 183 pounds, Williams’s main position will be at safety but he said he’ll also line up at corner, nickel and even linebacker in high school. He wants to carry that same varied skill set to college, which is something he’s talked about with Gideon.
A four-star prospect, Williams ranks No. 40 on the Rivals100. He joins Jamel Johnson and Malik Muhammad as defensive back commitments for Texas in the 2023 class.