Notre Dame added its third wide receiver to the 2022 recruiting class today when top 100 target CJ Williams announced for the Irish. There was pro-Irish buzz for a long time around the 6’2″, 193-pound Californian and Alabama legacy; now, he’s set to become the first Mater Dei product to wear the blue and gold since linebacker Joe Schmidt in 2015. Will he follow in the most famous Notre Dame/Mater Dei alum’s footsteps and nab his own Heisman? That’s probably a bit of a stretch, but he doesn’t need to have a career like John Huarte’s to preserve a spot as one of the most important recruiting wins in a while for the Irish.

Even casual Notre Dame fans are likely aware that the wide receivers are a constant topic of intrigue and concern. Every recent national champion has had excellent performance from at least a pair of receivers – 2020 Alabama had Devonta Smith and John Metchie (and half a season from Jaylen Waddle), 2019 LSU had Ja’Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson, 2018 Clemson had Justyn Ross and Tee Higgins, 2017 Alabama had Calvin Ridley (plus Jerry Jeudy and Henry Ruggs in smaller roles), 2016 Clemson had Mike Williams and four other guys over 400 yards. You need talent on the outside to win in modern college football.

That’s why landing Williams is such a big deal. He’s not a burner like Ruggs or Chase, but don’t let that fool you; he’s an extremely polished and physical receiver who can beat you in a lot of different ways from the perimeter or the slot. He’s drawn some comparisons to another LA product who was a perfect fit for Notre Dame but stayed out west – our old nemesis Juju Smith-Schuster. Some Irish fans have bemoaned that his comparison is “only” Juju; I’m not sure why the type of player who could post 200 receptions and 3,000 yards in his collegiate career is someone we wouldn’t need, but hey, chaque a son goût.

Recruiting Service Rankings

247Sports Composite — 4 star (.9637 rating), #86 overall, #11 WR, #7 in CA

247Sports — 4 star (94 rating), #72 overall, #9 WR, #7 in CA

Rivals — 4 star (6.0 rating), #29 overall, #3 WR, #2 in CA (if you’re curious, their lowest 5 star is #26)

ESPN — 4 star (82 rating), #207 overall, #29 WR, #14 in CA

Irish Sports Daily — 4 star (94 rating)

Cohort

In addition to Notre Dame, Williams holds offers from (deep breath) Alabama, Auburn, Duke, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, LSU, Miami, Michigan, Northwestern, Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, Stanford, Texas, Texas A&M, UCLA, USC, Washington, and Wisconsin, among many others.

Highlights

As noted, Williams can run just fine but he likely won’t win very many Fastest Man competitions. That literally might be the one complaint you could have about his game. His two most salient traits here are that he’s extremely physical with very secure hands at the point of attack – I would bet a fair amount of money that 50/50 balls thrown to him are really more like 80/20 balls – and he has exceptional body control, whether contorting himself to toe-tap with ease or tracking a ball thrown over the wrong shoulder. He’s an exquisite route runner who, as can be seen in this 7-on-7 highlight reel from this summer, handles man coverage easily and has a knack for finding soft spots in zone coverage. He shows a good mix of slipperiness and power after the catch. He’s both very willing and very able as a blocker. And, interestingly, he plays inside and outside right now and projects to do the same at the next level.

I like the Juju comparison – I think Smith-Schuster was a little bit more of everything, but Williams is definitely in that mold. Pretty sure any team in the country has a spot for that kind of player.

Impact

As we alluded to above, the Irish receiver room needs to take a step up in raw talent. The incoming freshman – Lorenzo Styles, Deion Colzie, and Jayden Thomas – are a big step in the right direction. All of them will likely get a chance to get on the field in 2021 and almost certainly at least one, maybe more, will play a significant role in 2022. Similarly, the 2022 receiver class will undoubtedly get a chance to make an immediate impact. Williams has college-ready physical traits and technique now, so I definitely like his chances at being an early contributor and an impact starter as an upperclassman.

Welcome to the Irish family, CJ!