Ohio State fans, you can now rest easy. The Buckeyes have filled their need at running back for the 2020 class.
Three-star senior running back Miyan Williams has flipped his commitment from Iowa State to Ohio State, ensuring Tony Alford won't be shut out in the running back race.
Williams finally made his unofficial visit on Saturday for the Buckeyes' huge showdown against Penn State, a 28-17 win, and the raucous atmosphere instantly made an impact on him. Less than four hours after seeing the Ohio State victory, Williams announced his flip via Twitter.
— Miyan Williams (@Miyann28) November 23, 2019
Williams, the nation's No. 43-ranked RB out of Winton Woods High School in Cincinnati, had been committed to Iowa State since July 4, but the Buckeyes began their pitch to flip him by offering him on Sept. 21, hours before kickoff of their game against Miami (Ohio). (Or, at least that's when Williams officially announced the offer.)
The Williams File
- Class: 2020
- Size: 5-foot-10/210 lbs
- Pos: RB
- School: Winton Woods High School (Cincinnati, OH)
- Composite Rating: ★★★
- Composite Rank: 43 (RB)
But Williams' recruitment really didn't look as if it was gaining much steam, as he was apparently sold on the Cyclones as his future program and held out on scheduling a visit to Columbus for a while.
Instead of making the trek west to Iowa, though, Williams will be staying closer to home, bringing a lower-ranked recruiting profile with him and what looks like more of a back who will provide depth as an old-school type of runner.
Williams finished as runner-up for Mr. Ohio and he surpassed 5,000 career rushing yards in September.
He's done that mostly as a physical, bruising runner at the high school level, able to trample over defenders while running downhill. He looks like a grown man already, but it will be interesting to see how that running style translates against collegiate defenders who can match his size and muscle. With a 4.74 time in the 40, he is not going to be separating himself from defenders on long runs, so his usage would most likely be short-yardage and goal-line situations.
He can smash people when blocking or he can go between the tackles and pick up the tough yards. He's not a home run threat and isn't going to make too many people miss but in a downhill ground attack, he's a major weapon.
That was the high school evaluation of former Buckeyes star Carlos Hyde by 247 Sports scout Mike Bakas. It seems Williams is in that same class of back.
| NAME | POSITION | OVERALL RANKING | POSITION RANKING | DATE OF COMMITMENT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PARIS JOHNSON JR. | OT | No. 7 | No. 1 | JUNE 28, 2018 |
| JACK MILLER | QB | No. 238 | No. 10 (PRO-STYLE) | JULY 1, 2018 |
| LUKE WYPLER | C | No. 74 | No. 1 | JULY 7, 2018 |
| JAXON SMITH-NJIGBA | WR | No. 56 | No. 9 | NOVEMBER 4, 2018 |
| GEE SCOTT JR. | WR | No. 64 | No. 11 | DECEMBER 25, 2018 |
| JAKOB JAMES | OG | No. 823 | No. 51 | JANUARY 21, 2019 |
| TREY LEROUX | OT | N/A | No. 88 | MARCH 11, 2019 |
| LEJOND CAVAZOS | CB | No. 249 | No. 25 (S) | APRIL 12, 2019 |
| JULIAN FLEMING | WR | No. 3 | No. 1 | MAY 31, 2019 |
| JAKE SEIBERT | K | N/A | No. 2 | JUNE 4, 2019 |
| GRANT TOUTANT | OT | No. 458 | No. 36 | JUNE 9, 2019 |
| TY HAMILTON | DE | No. 744 | No. 37 (SDE) | JUNE 16, 2019 |
| CLARK PHILLIPS | CB | No. 45 | No. 5 | JUNE 21, 2019 |
| CODY SIMON | LB | No. 122 | No. 9 (OLB) | JUNE 29, 2019 |
| DARRION HENRY | DT | No. 168 | No. 15 | JUNE 29, 2019 |
| JOE ROYER | TE | No. 482 | No. 17 | JULY 2, 2019 |
| MITCHELL MELTON | LB | No. 672 | No. 42 (OLB) | JULY 3, 2019 |
| CAMERON MARTINEZ | ATH | No. 375 | No. 16 | JULY 4, 2019 |
| JOSH FRYAR | OL | No. 422 | No. 23 (OG) | JULY 4, 2019 |
| MOOKIE COOPER | WR | No. 80 | No. 15 | JULY 8, 2019 |
| LATHAN RANSOM | S | No. 77 | No. 3 | JULY 16, 2019 |
| KOURT WILLIAMS | LB | No. 160 | No. 11 | JULY 24, 2019 |
| JACOLBE COWAN | DE | No. 165 | No. 14 (DT) | OCTOBER 4, 2019 |
| RYAN WATTS III | CB | No. 256 | No. 18 | OCTOBER 13, 2019 |
| MIYAN WILLIAMS | RB | No. 618 | No. 43 | NOVEMBER 23, 2019 |
Out of the three final running back targets highest on the Buckeyes' board – Williams, Jahmyr Gibbs, Kevontre Bradford – Williams brings the most physicality and play-now readiness, though not as high of a ceiling in terms of playmaking and star impact as the other two.
His commitment, however, ensures the Buckeyes will have a sturdy running back talent to give them depth in both the short and long term.
