How Lotzeir Brooks will fit into Alabama’s offense when Ryan Williams returns

Lotzeir Brooks had a stellar performance in his first collegiate start, catching four passes for 58 yards in Alabama’s 73-0 victory over ULM in the Tide’s 2025 home opener. The freshman wide receiver started in the slot last Saturday because Ryan Williams had not been cleared after suffering a concussion versus Florida State, but the Alabama offense was rolling throughout the game, including the first half.

Media members and fans are saying Brooks reminds them of former Alabama wide receiver, Jaylen Waddle, which is a great compliment to receive after one start, but Alabama still has Williams in the wide receiver room who will eventually be cleared to return to action.

This has raised questions about how much playing time Brooks should get as the season progresses and how head coach Kalen DeBoer will navigate this matter.

“I think that’s certainly really a valid question,” DeBoer said when asked how Brooks would fit in offense when Williams returns. “Lotzeir’s built up a lot of momentum here in the last three weeks to four weeks. He had a nice spring ball and made some plays on Saturday. And so, you know, got some confidence in him. Made guys miss and made big catches on third down. In the first game, he played with some aggression on some special teams plays that we were hoping for, and he came through. As far as how it affects everything, it adds him to the mix, which then moves people around. Doesn’t mean you have to play everyone in the same spot the whole game. I think Germie [Bernard] can play inside and outside. I think Ryan can play inside and outside. We just got to always continue to be evaluating that throughout the season, and different dynamics will change too that maybe are unknown right now, fortunate or unfortunate. So, Ryan’s got that versatility. He’s taken a number of snaps inside, but we know what he can do outside too. And he made a lot of nice plays as we all know on the outside… We got a lot of versatility with the guys. We just got to continue to hone in and see how it all fits together.”

Before he got concussed, Williams was not having the best 2025 season debut against Florida State as he only caught five of his 11 targets for 30 yards and dropped multiple passes. Former Alabama players like A.J. McCarron called Williams out for not looking any faster or stronger, saying he played too high and was not running good routes.

There is no word yet on if Williams is going to play against Wisconsin on Saturday, but if he is not cleared, Brooks will likely get another start in the slot. This is a storyline to closely monitor throughout the 2025 season.