No. 1 Linebacker in America, Ole Miss Football Commit Suffers Brutal Knee Injury

Leesburg (Fla.) Tavares four-star linebacker Izayia Williams revealed a verbal commitment to Lane Kiffin and the Ole Miss Rebels in May after going public with a decision.

Williams, the No. 1 rated linebacker in America, flipped his commitment from the Florida Gators to the Ole Miss Rebels with a visit to Oxford (Miss.) sealing the deal this offseason.

The 6-foot-1, 210-pounder has had a unique recruiting process to this point after being verbally committed to multiple programs.

He committed to Louisville in November of 2023 during his sophomore campaign with the pledge being short-lived.

Williams de-committed from the Louisville program just three months later prior to revealing a decision to pledge to the Syracuse Orange in January of 2024.

Fast forward to August of 2024 and Williams once again elected to reopen his recruitment process. He then committed to Mike Norvell and the Florida State Seminoles one month later.

Moving ahead, Williams backed off of his pledge to the Florida State program in November and made the move to join Billy Napier's Florida Gators 2026 Recruiting Class.

Now, it's Kiffin and the Rebels' turn to attempt to hold onto Williams' pledge after the top-ranked linebacker in America flipped to Ole Miss in May.

The Recap: Williams' Recruitment History

Commits to Louisville - Nov. 2023
Decommits from Louisville - Jan. 2024
Commits to Syracuse - April 2024
Decommits from Syracuse - Aug. 2024
Commits to Florida State - Sept. 2024
Decommits from Florida State- Nov. 2024
Commits to Florida - Mar. 2025
Flips to Ole Miss - May 2025

But Williams is now set to navigate a unique stretch.

The top-ranked linebacker in the 2026 Recruiting Cycle suffered a knee injury this offseason that could end his senior campaign before it starts, according to Rivals.

Per @JohnGarcia_Jr, Ole Miss commit, No. 1 LB Izayia Williams confirms his knee injury, what's next after the injury. pic.twitter.com/3LoI8Y0wLL
— Billy Embody (@BillyEmbody) July 31, 2025

Ole Miss currently holds a Top-20 Recruiting Class in the 2026 cycle with Williams a headliner for Kiffin and Co.

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