Florida Football: Scooby Williams is putting it all together

Once a highly touted prospect for Florida football, linebacker Scooby Williams didn’t have a great first two years in Gainesville. Even with limited and protected snaps, Williams never seemed comfortable on the field and sometimes looked like a lost puppy.

Whether it’s Austin Armstrong’s system or just general offseason growth from Williams, the redshirt sophomore is emblematic of the turnaround Florida’s defense as a whole has had in the first month of the season.

Florida Football: No longer a Mystery Machine

Williams was a top 50 prospect in the class of 2021. Noted for his athleticism, he came to Gainesville with high hopes of being the next great linebacker for Florida football.

Except his first two years in Florida were rough.

He played just 11 snaps on defense in 2021 before redshirting. He took 146 snaps last season over eight games, and they were a mixed bag. Against Eastern Washington, he flashed some of the potential that he had, but he struggled mightily against Tennessee, Missouri, Oregon State, and Florida State, earning a PFF grade under 50 in all four of those games.

By the time the season was done, of the 26 defensive players that played at least 100 snaps in 2022, Williams was graded out by PFF as the worst of Florida’s roster.

Fast forward a season, and Williams looks like a completely different player.

He is still not graded as high as some other players on the team, but he frequently meets the eyeball test as a wrecking ball for Florida’s defense. While Shemar James may still better understand the game as a whole, Williams can finally flash his athleticism as his own read of the game has improved immensely.

William’s real strength will come in when Florida takes on teams with a mobile QB. Joe Milton and Jalon Jones were mostly held in check from running the ball. Florida will need that to continue when it takes on Spencer Rattler, KJ Jefferson, and Jordan Travis.

Against UNC Charlotte, Williams received his highest grade ever for run defense and overall tackling. As he continues to better under Austin Armstrong’s defense, Williams can finally grow into the player Florida fans hoped for when he originally committed.