Commitment Preview: Nation's No. 1 LB Justin Williams Set to Announce College Decision
Conroe (Tex.) Oak Ridge linebacker Justin Williams has seen a pretty significant rise on the recruiting trail since last season.
The former safety turned backer had a strong junior year and has excelled on the camp circuit, leading him to a five-star (0.9952) rating on the 247Sports Composite and the title of No. 1 linebacker in the 2024 class.
The No. 3 recruit in the Lone Star State is set to commit on Monday July 24 and will choose from a loaded top group featuring Oregon, Texas, Georgia and Alabama.
The 6-foot-2, 205-pound backer took official visits to Oregon and Georgia this summer, but what are Oregon's chances heading into a decision?
At various times the Ducks have surged for Williams. In fact, I've written multiple times that I believed they were in a position to land a commitment in the fall, but that never came to fruition.
Williams has taken no less than five trips to Eugene during his recruitment, so there's clear mutual interest. Dan Lanning's chances with the coveted backer looked like they might surge even more when Oregon offered and recruited his teammate, Conroe (Tex.) Oak Ridge defensive lineman Joseph Jonah-Ajonye.
He took a couple trips out to Eugene and Oregon was a finalist for him as well, but Jonah-Ajonye has since committed to Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs, which only strengthens their chances with Williams.
Can Oregon pull off a shocker?
For my money, I think Williams will commit to Georgia on Monday. The people I've spoken with around the program in Eugene and in Texas have only reinforced the positive momentum for the Bulldogs in this recruitment, so I'm logging my pick for them.
I know I'm far from the first one to log this pick, but I've been on vacation, so I'm getting my thoughts in now before the announcement.
Oregon has two linebacker commits in the 2024 recruiting class in Long Beach (Calif.) Poly standout Dylan Williams and new Los Alamitos (Calif.) arrival Kamar Mothudi.
While it will probably bum fans out to miss on Justin Williams, I recently logged a prediction in favor of Oregon for 2024 Yelm (Wash.) linebacker Brayden Platt, who is down to a top two of Oregon and Oklahoma and will announce his decision on September 4.