Want to attack every day with the latest Georgia football recruiting info? That’s the Intel. This rep has the latest with 4-star WR Hykeem Williams. He ranks as the nation’s No. 7 WR and the No. 43 overall prospect for 2023 on the 247Sports Composite ratings.
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Hykeem Williams was recently named the Miami-area Metro Athlete of the Year by The Miami Herald.
That was for his prowess as an All-American and a top 50 prospect at receiver and his work as a state champion catalyst on the hardwood.
He was at Georgia for G-Day. Williams looked quite comfortable sitting with some very passionate 2022 signees in the West End Zone stands. Those were the ‘Dawgs in the most recent class that were not able to graduate early.
After that visit, Williams told DawgNation that it gets better every time he is in Athens.
Williams also said no school has a guy that’s quite like Georgia freshman defensive tackle Christen Miller. Miller goes by the handle “FatCh7s” on his social media.
“Fat Chris is probably the coolest one,” Williams said back in April. “I am not going to lie to you. He’s fun. Funny. Cool. You won’t find another Fat Chris anywhere. Good luck.”
He’s forged quite a friendship with the charismatic 2022 All-American out of Cedar Grove High School.
Before we get started, check out his explosive early junior film. The fuss, it should be noted, is very much warranted here.
The 6-foot-3, 216-pound All-American just took his first official visit to UGA this past weekend. There are a few quick takes to trot out here.
1) The vibe in Athens keeps getting better for Hykeem Williams
Did it continue to get better on his official?
“Heck yeah,” he said. “Of course it does. It just keeps getting better. Are you feeling me? This was not like an unofficial visit so you know it got better.”
He wanted to take two of his official visits this summer. That’s because he didn’t have a loaded travel schedule in the fall. Georgia got this past weekend. Pitt is now up this weekend.
Williams said he will save Texas A&M and Florida State for two of his last three officials this fall. He’s not sure about which school might get his fifth official visit this fall at this time.
What does he like best about the Bulldogs?
“Man, it is like so much,” he said. “I don’t even know. It is just like a really good school overall.”
2) No school still has a guy like Christen Miller
“He’s my boy, man,” Williams said. “We are like brothers from another mother. ... Nobody in the world has a guy like him.”
Those two just hang.
“He doesn’t even be like pushing me to come,” Williams said. “He’ll just say ‘You feel me?’ and be like that. He says you need to come and turn up. He’s not really about come play ball, but we are just building a relationship.”
He sees Miller as a life-long friend. Those two hope to be close when they are in their 40s.
“Facts,” he said.
3) He said this time he can see himself in Athens
Williams had a lot of fun over the weekend. It wasn’t just because of the 5-star helping of Shrimp and Grits he had on Saturday.
Can he picture himself at Georgia yet?
“Yes, sir,” he said.
An official visit, especially at a place like Georgia that understands recruiting as the roots of the program, should be great.
It would be a news item in this space if any blue-chip target DID NOT have a fantastic OV. Georgia could host great officials in a power blackout, a gas shortage and even amid some foul weather. It is like expecting the shoes to tie and the chin strap to buckle.
What was the biggest way the official visit helped the ‘Dawgs?
“Just the relationships we have,” Williams said. “We talk a lot.”
Does he feel like he’s wanted and needed?
“Like a big huge priority,” he said.
He said Georgia always welcomes him.
“With open arms,” he said. “Everyone is always excited when I get there. Everyone is always making sure I am straight.”
Williams enjoyed trying on the gear amid the coaches and the other official visitors.
“It was just hype,” he said.
4) Texas A&M will continue to be a big factor in his recruitment
Williams has taken a lot of high-profile visits to Texas A&M. There’s no denying the Aggies are now a major player in every recruit they prioritize.
He had a lot of favorable thoughts about the Aggies.
“It is just beautiful there,” he said of College Station. “It is the biggest campus in the country. Like probably the best-looking campus I have seen so far. The people there are amazing.”
Williams was asked to compare what he likes best about A&M with what he likes best about UGA.
“What do I like better about A&M than Georgia?” he said. “Hmm. I don’t know about that. At the end of the day, it is all going to be about relationships. What I like better about A&M would probably be the campus.”
When he thinks about the ‘Dawgs, he doesn’t think about the scenery.
“It is the relationship with Georgia,” he said. “When I think about Georgia what comes to my mind is it is a winning program if you ask me. Since like 2015, they are third in winning in college football.”
Hykeem Williams: The fun he had on his OV
You guys know Georgia by now, right? The ‘Dawgs are always competing in everything. Williams said the most fun he had on his OV was when all the recruits played charades together.
Yep. Charades. Offense on one side. Defense on the other.
It was another sign the offensive prospects can stand out greatly in the ‘23 recruiting class. Williams could be seen as a 5-star at charades, too.
“We played charades,” he said. “That was the most fun thing we did. We won. My team won.”
It wasn’t even close, he said.
Georgia receivers coach Bryan McClendon has been a strong asset. The plan he has for Williams was made clear. It will be a lot of the balls and calls that George Pickens used to get in Todd Monken’s offense.
“To be that 1-on-1 guy,” Williams said. “The go-to guy.”
He had his family with him on his official visit. He said they had a great time as well.
Hykeem Williams: He won’t let this decision get too complicated
Williams would now like to make his decision sometime in the fall.
He said back in April that Alabama, Pitt and Texas A&M were the schools that were really working to earn his signature on the scholarship papers. That was basically it.
“There’s no point in wasting people’s time at this point,” he said. “Half the people that have all these schools, I feel like they just want a lot of people to stay on them and recruit them. They don’t understand how valuable other people’s time actually is. They are wasting people’s time and their own money going everywhere. They are wasting it. There are other kids out here who need a chance and they’ve got all these colleges focusing on them for no real reason.”
Is the decision getting harder with every visit? He felt that way in April. He doesn’t feel that way anymore.
Will this decision be harder the longer it goes?
“Nah,” he said this week.
Why?
“I know how to control all that stuff,” he said. “I know how to control a lot of stuff so this is not like really hard. In the recruiting process, you have to write down the ‘pros’ and ‘cons’ you have about every school and go from there. You have to see if you can do that for every school.”
He’s able to feel what is genuine to him. Not something propped up for a big recruit’s visit. He looks for that.
What’s the biggest pro for the ‘Dawgs with him?
“The biggest pro would probably be the relationships there at Georgia,” he said.
What about the “con” column?
“A lot of people say they run the ball a lot,” Williams said.
The biggest “pro” for A&M was what he said earlier.
“College Station,” he said.
He couldn’t come up with a “con” for the Aggies.
Hykeem Williams: The potential Arch Manning factor
Williams did entertain a thought about what the QB in the class might look like for Georgia. What would Georgia landing a commitment from Arch Manning mean?
Would that help Georgia’s chances with Williams?
“Heck yeah it does,” he said. “Heck yeah. I need a quarterback.”
Manning at quarterback would help dispel those “run the ball a lot” perceptions about Georgia’s offense. He feels Georgia would throw the ball more with a guy like Manning under center.
“They got to,” Williams said. “It is only right.”
Williams said he will be back in Athens for an unofficial visit. He’ll be at a game.
He has a big goal for his senior year.
“The number one goal is to finish the season healthy,” he said.
He does plan to graduate early and enroll in January of 2023. The intended major is as impressive as some of those highlights and big catches.
“Robotics or engineering most likely,” he said back in April.
When he arrives, that school is going to get a real big playmaker in its receiver room. McClendon and Kirby Smart made sure he got the message loud and clear before he left his official visit.
“I’m a priority,” he said.
He outlined the major keys to this decision. When the man said he’s not going to let this get too hard for him, he wasn’t kidding. He was able to boil it down simply.
“Being comfortable where ever I go,” he said.
What comes after that?
“Development,” he said.
Georgia was able to share its development side with a lot of its official visitors recently. Anthony Evans recently detailed how the ‘Dawgs were able to show him explosive plays in the passing game in the first half of games last fall.
He was also intrigued by the fact that Georgia has had nine receivers drafted by the NFL over the last 10 years. There are only four programs that have had more. Clemson and Ohio State have had 11. Alabama and LSU have had 10.
The Bulldogs are ahead of other offensive-heavy notables like Oklahoma, Michigan, USC, Florida, Notre Dame, Penn State, Texas A&M, Miami, FSU, Texas and Oregon in that specific stat.
SENTELL’S INTEL
(check on the recent reads on DawgNation.com)
- BREAKING: Peach State priority CJ Allen commits to play LB at UGA
- New 5-star cornerback AJ Harris wants to play with CJ Allen, Joenel Aguero, Caleb Downs, Arch Manning and Justice Haynes
- AJ Harris: The new 5-star commit told Kirby Smart he was going to play for him in the sixth grade
- Georgia football: A trio of 5-star recruits highlights another loaded weekend of official visitors
- Texas speedster Anthony Evans III shares how UGA countered negative perceptions on his OV
- AJ Harris: Check out the rave review the new Bulldog commit got from an NFL first-round CB
- BREAKING: 5-star AJ Harris commits to UGA
- How much will NIL opportunities sway the decisions of some of Georgia’s top 2023 targets?
- Talented DL prospect Jamaal Jarrett breaks down a key Georgia official visit
- Joshua Miller: Bulldogs flip talented OL from Penn State to their 2023 class
- Joenel Aguero: 5-star safety shared where his head was at prior to a BIG Georgia official visit
- CJ Allen: Elite LB target breaks down his “perfect” Georgia official visit
- Priority 5-star target Qua Russaw and James Smith set up their first official visit to UGA
- TJ Shanahan Jr: Elite OL prospect breaks down key UGA official visit
- Justice Haynes: ‘Dawgs compare legacy RB to an “RBU” great on a “one for the books” visit
- Georgia football recruiting: 23 quick-hit things to know from the first huge 2023 recruiting weekend
- Malik Benson: Nation’s No. 1 JUCO prospect shares why Georgia is on his mind
- Electric “freak” LB Qua Russaw explains how Georgia has been recruiting him the right way so far
- Arch Manning: The quest to not only be the best but to be the best Manning
- Arch Manning: The 30-something things learned from watching the nation’s No. 1 prospect practice
- James Smith: The nation’s No. 2 DL talks up Georgia, Alabama among his top 11
